Standing Your Ground
by Simone Santos
Summary: Happy/OC. Sequel to "Finding Home". As Happy and Madeline try to settle in to their relationship outside forces send the MC into a frenzy. Can they really have it all? Or will everything fall apart.
1. Chapter 1

"Standing Your Ground"

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.

This is the sequel to "Finding Home". You can probably follow this if you haven't read it but you might get confused. There will be "M" rated content in this story in accordance with what you see when watching the show.

A/N: Here we go again. This is a work in progress so updates will most likely be once weekly. Please enjoy. Review if you're so inclined :)

Chapter One

Madeline ducked behind the large recycling container at the edge of the Charming High School property and lit a cigarette. She sighed and brought her phone to her ear. "You have one new message." The recorded voice informed her. She listened and hoped to hear her favorite raspy voice but instead it was her electrician. "Hey Ms. Walker. It's Randy. Sorry to say that you're going to need to be at the hotel another night." Madeline cursed and missed the rest of the message. She'd just replay it later.

She continued to smoke, enjoying the silence after spending the morning in a class room full of hyper active teenagers. There was not enough money in the world for her to ever even want to go back to being that age.

The phone rang, not her regular line but the prepaid that she always kept in her pocket with the ringer on. It could only be one person. "Hey."

"Hey." Happy sounded tired. Tired and stressed. "You doing okay?"

"I'm..." She held back from regaling him with how much she hated work right now. He didn't need to hear that. "I'm pretty good. It's the same shit really. There is one thing with the house. Turns out that it wasn't a short in the bathroom, the entire place needed rewiring. I thought that I'd be back today."

"Back?" He demanded.

"I've been staying at the Charming Inn for the past two nights because there's no power. I was going to tell you but you haven't called."

"Why didn't you go to the club house?" Happy demanded. The idea of her alone in a hotel did not sit well with him, especially considering the reason that Jax has sent him off on this run to begin with. In a hotel anything could happen. At the club house he knew that his Brother's would keep her safe.

Honestly Madeline had thought about going to the clubhouse but hadn't because she wasn't sure that it would be okay. After all it wasn't like she was an Old Lady or anything. "Is that okay?"

He sighed, loudly. "Of course it is Mad. What the fuck? Go there. Tonight." It was clearly an order and he very rarely issued those to her.

"Okay, I'll go right after school and get my shit." She promised. "Miss you."

He fell silent for a moment. "Yeah. Same here. I got to go. Better do what I told you."

"Be safe." She wasn't sure that he'd even heard her before he hung up. It didn't bother her that he was so abrupt on his calls. That was him. That was fine with her. She tossed her cigarette and headed back to class with a smile on her face just because she'd heard his voice. That was all it really took to make her day brighter.

:) :) :)

Happy shoved the phone back in his pocket. He looked over at Quinn and the Nomad president smiled. "You good to go now?" The man questioned.

"Yeah." Happy replied. He took his lighter out and picked up the gasoline filled bottle with a rag for a wick. The hair salon had already been soaked with gas, the bodies inside would incinerate along with the structure. He flicked the lighter, set the bottle aflame and tossed it inside with accuracy. "Let's go."

:) :) :)

"What's up Maddy?" Juice spotted her first thing as she walked in the door and grinned at her.

Out of all of Happy's Brothers he was the one that she felt the closest too. Maybe because they were close in age or maybe because he was just so damn goofy that he was hard to resist. "Hey Juice. I just got out of work. I've got no power at the house. Hap said to come by, stay in his room."

"No power?" Juice cringed. "Got bags?'

"They're out in the car."

"I'll get them." He jumped up. "You can head on back if you want. Bobby's back cooking dinner."

"I'll see if he needs a hand." She offered immediately because she loved to cooking and cooking with Bobby was always fun. He enjoyed having someone to cook with him. And she enjoyed not feeling out of place.

Even though it had been four months or so since she and Happy had started seeing one another there were times when she felt like people still looked at her and wondered what the hell they were doing together.

Sometimes she'd wonder that herself but the answer always came to her quickly, simply. She loved him and he loved her or she was pretty sure that he did. The words didn't seem to be something he'd say easily and that only made the things he did say and do matter more.

"Sweet. Maybe you can make something for dessert. Those brownie things?" He asked hopefully.

"We'll see."

"Cool." Juice told her. "Hey, up for a little car racing later?"

"As long as it goes along with a few beers."

"You've got a deal." He took off towards the door and Madeline started for the kitchen but then a voice stopped her.

"Shouldn't be flirting with him." The woman at the bar told her. Her nickname was Butter because her legs spread that easily. She was one of the women who'd been around the club a long time, happily being passed from Brother to Brother. "Can't imagine that your Old Man would like that."

She said Old Man with enough sarcasm to make Madeline's jaw set in a hard line. When it came to labels she and Happy avoided them for the most part. She was his girl. She knew that. The Club knew that. That was all the recognition that she needed. It wasn't who she was to chase the crow.

"He knows he's got nothing to worry about when it comes to me." Madeline spoke with a smile but her voice was hard. "And just so you know, talking is not flirting. Unless you fuck anyone who speaks to you." She waited a second. "Oh, wait. You do."

Madeline despised ninety nine point nine percent of the women who took the term crow eaters and made it their own. It wasn't because they slept around, women were entitled to do that if they chose. It was because most of them did it in the hopes that opening their legs would get them to a higher social standing within the club.

"Least I don't walk around looking like a mousey ass soccer mom with a stick up her ass." Butter replied.

The conversation was now drawing attention from everyone else in the room. Madeline let out a laugh. "I'd rather look like a soccer mom than a cheap hooker."

Someone laughed, Madeline wasn't sure who. Butter let out a growl and jumped off of the chair. She was probably feeling bold because Happy wasn't around. She lunged forward and Madeline knew that a fight was about to happen.

"The fuck you think you're doing?" Tig spoke as he snagged Butter by the back of her hair. The woman winced and froze. "I know that you're not fucking with Madeline."

"No, I was just leaving." The dye job blonde stuttered the words. The minute that Tig let go of her hair she sprinted for the door.

He chuckled as he watched her go but his expression was serious when he turned back to Madeline. "Can't let those bitches talk to you like that. Letting them disrespect you is the same as them disrespecting Hap. That shit isn't tolerated." Lecture over, he grinned and looked her up and down. "You do look like a soccer mom though, a really hot soccer mom."

"Pervert." She told him with a quick roll of her eyes. "Thanks Tiggy."

"Whatever." He replied. "Just remember what the fuck I said."

:) :)

The Indian Hills club was solemn. Another "regular" was missing. Calvin Dennis was trusted enough that Jury had intended to ask him to prospect for the club but he'd gone home one night and never come back. There was no answer on his phone and he hadn't been to work.

No one expected to find him alive. Not after what happened with the women. Three of Jury's stable had gone on a shopping trip. They'd never come back to work their shifts. The following morning they'd been found in the grassy area in front of the building, at least their heads had been found tucked neatly into the shopping bags with their purchases. Knowing that they were in over their head Jury had called Jax.

The charter president had wasted no time sending Happy, Quinn and three of his Nomads to check out the situation because they would be best equipped to deal with it. Happy had seem a lot in his life. He'd done a lot, crazy shit that would make others puke just to hear about it but heads in shopping bags? That was some seriously twisted shit but he could see how it was a great way to deliver a message.

There were more questions than answers but they were starting to make progress. They'd found one man creeping around the club house and once he'd been interogated he'd told them who they were up against. He'd admitted to a part in the killings of the women and had paid for that part with his life after leading them to the hair salon.

Happy was glad to deal out the justice that Jury and his crew wouldn't have the stomach to. As a Nomad he'd done worse. Hell, he'd done worse just since he'd been in Charming.

"Hey." A sultry female voice spoke from next to him. "You want some company Killa?"

He turned to look at her. There was something familiar about her voice and when he saw her face he knew that he'd seen her before. The question was where. "Nah, don't need company just get me another drink."

"Sure Baby." She sashayed away and he shook his head.

"That one there?" Quinn motioned to the woman. "She could suck chrome off of a pipe and she is up for anything." A deep rumble of laughter escaped his lips. "Trust me Brother, I mean anything."

"So why aren't you following her?" Happy asked.

"Got my eye on something else." The bearded man replied. "You should go after her. Relieve some stress. Know you need it Brother."

Happy finished his beer and set the empty bottle down. "Not into her."

"Hell Hap, we're in a fucking whore house. If you aren't into her than there should be some sweet young thing here that catches your eye. Unless of course you left your dick back in Charming. Don't tell me that you're waiting to go back to your bitch and get off." Quinn looked at him as if he'd lost his mind when Happy just shrugged. "Christ, never thought that I'd see the day you went soft."

"Ain't soft." Happy said with a slight growl to his voice. He slugged Quinn in the shoulder to prove his point, smirking as the man winced.

"Whatever you say." Quinn rose to his feet, shook his head and mumbled something under his breath as he walked away.

Happy let him go. The man was right about one thing, he needed a release for everything that had built up inside of him. Sure, it would be easy to grab one of the sweet butts milling around just begging for it but easy didn't mean it was what he wanted to do.

:) :)

Madeline was content to leave the after dinner clean up to the crow eaters, noticing with some satisfaction that Butter hadn't come back. She joined Juice for a drink and as usual they ended up at his computer playing games. He was better than she was but she could hold her own in most of the games.

She sat back and let him play some war game. It was surprising how low key the night was especially for a Friday night. Normally she'd only be able to take a few hours of the party before she'd head back to Happy's room or end up sitting outside with several beers enjoying the fresh air.

For the first time since Happy had taken off on this run Madeline felt completely relaxed. "It's so quiet tonight."

Juice's head snapped towards her. "Don't say that! It's the biggest jinx in the world."

"Sorry." She told him as she took another sip of beer. "Forget that I said anything."

"Already have." He paused the game. "I need another drink."

"Okay." She watched him walk away and enjoyed the rest of her beer. It was so strange to see everyone there except for Happy.

"_Jax needs me to do something for The Club." Happy's voice cut through the quiet of the darkened bedroom. _

"_Can I ask?" Madeline shifted her head to look up at him._

"_Not yet." He reached out and pulled her to him. "Be gone for a few weeks." His hand stroked over her arm. _

"_Alright." She swallowed hard and curled against him. She'd gotten familiar with his runs though this seemed like it was going to be the longest one. "Who's going with you?"_

"_Some guys from another Charter. My old Charter."_

"_The Nomads."_

"_Yes." He looked down at her, smiled at the expression on her face. "Nothing for you to worry about Girl."_

"_Okay Hap." She pressed her lips to his bare chest and did her best to erase her concern from her face. He'd told her not to worry so if she did it would just piss him off._

Madeline wondered again what had been so important to The Club that Hap had to deal with it. She wasn't stupid between being called Killa and what she knew that he was capable of she had a pretty damn good idea what it was he did for them.

She carried her empty bottle to the bar. "Hey Darling." Jax leaned on the wood next to her. "Good to see you."

"How's it going Jax?"

"Real good." He replied with one of his trademark smiles. "How about you? You know that you can stay here as long as you need to. I hope you know that."

"Thanks. I'm hoping it's just through the weekend. I miss being at home."

"You let me know anything you need. It'll get taken care of." He was suddenly serious.

"Appreciate it." She told him. "Hey, how are Tara and the kids? I haven't seen them in forever."

"They're great." He smiled widely as he always did when his family was mentioned. "They'll be around tomorrow. I know that they'll all love to see you. Tara's been bitching about needing a girls night."

"I can certainly help her with that."

"Jackie Boy!" Chibs wandered over. "Hello Lass."

"Hey Chibs." She listened to the two of them talk for several minutes and then wandered away. She looked around for Juice but didn't see him anywhere. Most likely some scantily dressed crow eater had caught his eyes and his attention had wandered. It had happened before when they were hanging out and she took no offense.

Madeline found a stool at the bar and sat to enjoy her drink and the music. An hour later when she was feeling just a little tipsy she decided that it was going to be best for her to head to bed. "Night Bobby."

"Night Sweetheart. I'm making cranberry almond muffins in the morning."

"Nice." She grinned. "I'll be looking forward to that."

She slid off of the stool and looked over as the door flew open. "Jax!" Juice shouted as he barreled into the room. The only word she could think of to describe his expression was panic. "We got a problem." He took a few steps and then threw up all over the floor.

"What the fuck!" Jax demanded. "Dude, if you took something again I'm going to personally kill you."

"Get everyone out." Tig was much more composed as he strode through the door. "Through the back." He added.

"Everyone out!" Jax ordered and chaos followed as everyone without a patch and all the women began to file towards the back exit. This sort of departure happened every now and then and no one questioned it.

Madeline didn't either. Club business was club business. She started for the door but Juice grabbed her arm. "Where are you going?" He asked, his normally tan skin pale.

"Jax said..."

"That doesn't mean you Madeline." Tig told her. "Go to the room. Stay there."

:) :) :)

Happy looked away from the two strippers gyrating up and down a pole feet from him. He slid the prepay out of his pocket as it rang. "Yeah?"

"We have a problem." Jax told him. "Just got an unexpected delivery."

"Fuck." Happy rose to his feet. "Where?"

"Club House. It's Butter."

"Butter?" It took him a second to recognize the name. "Fuck." He repeated. "Wait, where's Madeline?"

"She's here. Safe. In your room. Told her to stay there."

"Make sure she does. You know how she is."

"I got her Brother. Won't let her get hurt. I promised you." Jax cleared his throat. "Think this was retaliation for the shop?"

"Could be or for the bodies inside." Happy caught Quinn's eye and signaled for him to join him. "What do you want us to do Pres?"

"Get back to Charming." Jax told him. "You and Quinn, leave the others in Indian Hills in case there's any trouble. You know that Jury will take care of them."

"On our way." Happy told him. "Trouble in Charming." He said to Quinn as he approached.

"When is there not trouble in Charming?"


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with the Sons of Anarchy. Madeline and anything else you don't recognize is mine.

A/N: You guys are awesome. Thanks for the reviews, faves and follows. I appreciate each and every one of you more than I can say. Enough from me. Enjoy.

CHAPTER TWO

Madeline started coffee and looked around the club house. There were no bodies littering the surfaces and hardly any mess. Well, it was a mess but for the aftermath of a Friday night party it was really not that bad.

She's woken expecting to be treated to Bobby's famous muffins but the man was nowhere to be seen.

The quiet of the club house was a little unnerving. For lack of anything better to do she decided to start cleaning the kitchen and the mess. That way Bobby would have a pristine work area and she wouldn't feel useless.

Empty bottles went into one bag. Napkins and other items into a different one. As with every single party there were pieces of clothing left behind. Madeline reached down to pick up a shirt. "Fucking gross." She said as her hand closed around something sticky and wet.

She dropped the shirt. A prospect could pick it up. Madeline retched as she looked down at her hand and saw that it was stained red. A coppery scent drifted up to her nose and she realized that the shirt was full of blood.

:) :) :)

Happy nodded curtly to Phil as he pulled into the yard with Quinn at his side. He saw Madeline immediately, dressed causally in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt. She was sitting on the picnic table with a cigarette in her hand. Her eyes met his and something surged through him.

He parked, got off of the bike and walked over to her. She remained where she was but her eyes were on him. "That how you greet me?" He demanded gruffly as he stopped in front of her.

In an instant she leaped up from the table and was in his arms. Her hands ran over his back. Her face pressed to his chest. It was a display of affection unlike any she'd ever delivered in front of his Brothers. She knew how he felt about public displays of affection. "What's wrong?"

"Missed you." Her voice was muffled by his chest.

"I know Girl but it's more than that." He let his hand move over her back. "Tell me." Madeline tried to speak but only a sob came out. He swore and gripped her tighter against him. "Tell me." He repeated as he pulled her back from him and gripped her arms.

Madeline inhaled sharply as the tightness of his fingers gripping her arms. His face was angry but she saw concern in his eyes. "I'm just being stupid. I was cleaning and there was a shirt. I picked it up and it was full of blood and I freaked. Bobby found me burning the damn thing in a trash can out back."

Happy frowned. Who had been dumb enough to leave a bloody shirt around? "You got scared?" He questioned because that's sure what it sounded like to him. He knew Madeline, knew that there was a lot she could handle but also knew that there was a lot that she couldn't.

"Got worried." She didn't like the word scared. "No one will tell me shit. All of them said to ask you."

"This you asking?"

"Yeah. Guess so." Madeline looked up at him, realized how she'd jumped on him. Shit. She knew that her being extra touchy in public was something that made him uncomfortable. "Shit. Sorry about jumping on you." She stepped back and resisted the urge to rub her arms where he'd grabbed her. Maybe she had been scared when she saw the blood on her hands. Maybe she still was a little.

"You're fine." He reached out and rubbed his fingers where he'd grabbed her. He knew that she was going to bruise and that he'd been too rough with her. "I'll tell you everything." He promised. "Got to get to Church."

"I'll be in our room." She smiled at him. "It's really great to see you."

He grinned at her smile. That was his little redheaded devil. Happy couldn't resist her and leaned down to bring his lips to hers. The kiss was shorter than he wanted it to be but he did need to get into Church and hopefully figure out what the hell was going on. "Gonna need a shower when I get back to the room." He spoke in a voice only she could hear. "Go back there and rest, you're going to need it."

:) :)

Church went by quickly. There were no easy answers. Once they left the Chapel they headed to Skeeter's where Tig had taken Butter's remains.

The twitchy man watched from the background as the bikers surrounded the body. Butter had been tortured by someone with experience. Both Happy and Quinn recognized the marks. Maximum pain with minimal blood loss. Keep the victim alive. Keep them talking. "You sure she had no family Juice?"

"None." Juice confirmed. He was near the door, almost halfway out of it. He looked a little green and had since he found the corpse stuffed in a trash bin near the front gate.

Silence hung in the air for a moment. "Do it." Jax told Skeeter. The man nodded and refused the envelope that Opie offered him.

"No charge." He stammered out the words. "She was always really nice to me." He explained. "You want her ashes?"

"I'll take them." Juice spoke up. "I mean I'll like spread them somewhere. Seems like the right thing to do."

"Let's head back." Opie rubbed a hand over his face. "I could use a damn drink."

"Fuck yeah." Quinn agreed. "Wouldn't say no to a sweet young thing either."

:) :)

Happy opened his room door and found Madeline fast asleep on the bed wrapped in a brown throw blanket. Seemed like she always had the blanket whether they were at her house or the club house. He teased her about it just because she'd get so mad. It amused him that his girl would need a security blanket. The one time he'd called it that to her he'd spent three nights on the couch.

He pulled the blanket off of her. "Mad."

Her eyes fluttered open. "Hey."

"Shower time." He informed her. "Get your ass up." He stepped away from the bed and began to strip off his clothes. "Unless you'd rather stay there."

Madeline was off the bed in a flash. She pulled off the long sleeved shirt of his she'd thrown on to reveal that she wore nothing beneath. "Wouldn't miss shower time for the world."

He all but dragged her into the small bathroom where he flipped on the water and stepped beneath the spray. Madeline reached for the soap and he remained still beneath the spray. Carefully she began to lather up his skin. His muscles started to relax beneath her touch. Her mouth found his skin, teasing as she let the soap fall and sank down to her knees. "Fuck."

She chuckled softly. "Told you that I missed you." And without waiting for his response she took him in her mouth and properly welcomed him home.

When the water ran cold they left the bathroom and returned to the bed. "Gonna need you to stay here until I say different. And when I say stay here, I mean inside the club house or on the yard. No trips to the store." His voice deepened, got more gruff.

Madeline remembered the last time she'd left the yard. The day that Tom had grabbed her. The day that she'd nearly died. The day that he'd saved her. The day that she'd realized she was head over heels no turning back in love with him. "Okay." She said simply. "Why?"

"Same reason that I was on the run. There's a new crew trying to make a name by going against us." He stroked his hand over her hair. She'd asked him once to tell her everything, not hold back. To trust her and let her be whatever help she could to him. He'd never realized how much help it could be just to have someone listen to him. "They killed three woman who worked at Indian Hills. One of their hang arounds is missing too."

"Oh my God."

"Hit here last night. Crow eater named Butter." He didn't sugar coat it because he wanted her to know how serious it was. How serious he was. "Juice found her. Idiot forgot about his shirt being bloody."

"Shit." Madeline looked up at him.

"Yeah." He agreed. "Need you to stay here and be smart. I know that you've got to work but you need to be vigilant. Keep the gun with you."

"I can't be armed at work." She pointed out.

"Keep it in your purse." He ran his hand over her back. "No fucking arguing Madeline."

"Alright. Maybe you could take me to the warehouse for practice?" She knew that she was horrible with a gun. Most likely because she hated them.

"I'll have someone take you if I can't."

"You leaving?" Happy heard the disappointment in her voice and pulled her closer to him.

"Not tonight." He pressed his lips to her hair. "Get some sleep."

:) :)

"So that was her earlier? The little redhead is the one who has Hap all turned around?" Quinn took a sip from the whiskey bottle in his hand and glanced over at Tig.

"Yup." The dark haired man replied.

"Never thought that I'd see the day." Quinn mused. "Some girl taking Hap's edge." He shook his head. "Hoped to get him to go Nomad again but now, well I think he's just gotten too soft."

"He ain't soft." Tig said in his friends defense. "That crazy bastard will never hesitate to do what needs to be done."

"Hope you're right Tig. Going to be some hard days ahead. Speaking of this girl, what do we know about her?"

"She's clean." Jax spoke from behind the two men. His annoyed tone made it clear that he'd heard the entire conversation. "No criminal history. No shady connections except for us." He eyed Quinn. "You really wanted to poach Happy from my table?"

"Not poach but I've always got room for him. Or I did." He shrugged. "You ran her?"

"Course I did." Jax replied quickly.

"Good. I don't trust a bitch. Any bitch. Especially one who acts all innocent and hooks up with a killer." Quinn lit a cigarette. "You ever think about going Nomad Tig?"

"Everyone's thought of it." The dark haired man replied without actually committing to anything.

"You decide that's what you want Tig, just say the word." Jax told him. Things had been on the tense side between the two of them since Jax stepped up to President. It was to be expected really, Tig had been Clay's right hand for a long time.

"You'll be the first to know."

:) :)

Madeline wiped syrup from Abel's face and grinned at Tara. "Getting him all hopped up on sugar before bringing him to Gemma?"

"That wasn't my plan but looks like it. I can't believe that Jax and I are actually going away. It's just for a night but we haven't done this in so long." The doctor grinned. "Got everything all set. It'll be good for us to both get our minds off of shit."

"I bet and I hear that the cabin is really nice."

"It is. Anytime you and Hap want to use it just say the word."

"Thanks. Sweet to offer but he's not exactly romantic get away guy."

"I'm sure that he'd go if you asked." The woman had never pressed for details of their relationship but was obvious in her curiousity.

Madeline was almost sure he would if she asked but that was part of the reason she would never ask. She got who he was, accepted and loved him for it. "My idea of a great night with him is just us together."

"Mommy! Ice Cream." Abel's cry turned the conversation away from her and Happy and Madeline was glad for it.

:) :)

Madeline returned to the yard alone leaving Tara to drop the boys off and head to the cabin. "Hey you."

"Hello." Madeline turned to see Quinn walking towards her.

"Get your gun."

"Excuse me?"

"Go and get your gun." He said the words slowly as if she were a child or just plain stupid.

"Why?" Madeline asked.

"Hasn't your man taught you not to ask questions."

"Sure, when it's him telling me what to do." She answered. "Honestly, I don't think it's too much to ask."

"Got a smart mouth huh?" He shook his head. "You want to practice shooting or what?"

"You're going to take me?" Madeline had known that it was possible Happy wouldn't be able to take her but she couldn't help but feel disappointed.

"Again with the questions. You know what, fuck this. Teach yourself smart ass." He turned and walked away without looking back leaving her to stare at his retreating form in confusion.

:) :)

"Your bitch has a real attitude."

Happy looked up from his bike. "The fuck you talking about Quinn?"

"Went to take her shooting. Asked me ten million questions." Quinn lit a cigarette. "Don't know how you deal with that shit. But at least she came back clean when Jax ran her."

"When he what?"

"Figured you knew Brother. New face around and you can't take chances. You need a hand?"

"Nah." Happy replied curtly. So Jax had ordered background on his girl without telling him first. That mean that Juice had done it. Done it all behind his back.

Quinn walked away and Happy didn't even notice. He was too busy being pissed. He'd vouched for Madeline from the first second that he'd brought her into the clubhouse. He'd sat across the table from Jax and told them all that she was his girl. Yet they'd run a check on her.

When he finished with his bike he went inside to look for Jax. For once he didn't see the man. "Hey Op? You seen Jax?"

"He took Tara up to the cabin for the night. You need something?"

"Nah, just wanted to talk to him." He saw Madeline in her normal position near Juice.

"Hey." She smiled at him and he could tell she was a little tipsy.

Happy gave her a small quick smile. "Hey." He turned his attention to Juice. "Got to talk to Juice real quick. Can you get me a drink?"

"Of course." She ran her hand over his arm as she passed.

Happy's eyes snapped to Juice when she walked away. "You show me what you found on her."

"Huh?" Juice swallowed hard. He'd known that the request would one day bite him in the ass.

"Don't."

"Wasn't anything. Here. I'll print it out." Juice ran his hand over his face and stopped himself from saying anything else.

Happy took the papers, folded them and stuck them in his pocket. "When?"

"Before she got taken." The man admitted. "It was just a precaution."

Madeline watched the exchange from near the bar. All it took was their body language to tell her something was off with both men. She glanced over at the hang around behind the bar. "Give me a shot. Tequila."

The man frowned. "You always say tequila is the devil."

"It is." She confirmed. "Just give me the shot." He complied and she tossed it down.

The moments until he motioned her over again seemed to take forever but finally he did. Madeline grabbed his beer and went over to him. "Here you go."

He grunted in thanks, took the bottle. "Go to the room."

"Why?"

"How about because I said so?" A dark look flashed over his face.

Madeline had seen that look before but never directed towards her. She didn't like it at all but she knew that nothing good could come from her saying so in the middle of the clubhouse. Instead she swallowed everything she wanted to say and her pride down and walked towards the back.

"Hey Maddy." Opie stopped her. "I need a favor."

"Uh okay, what?" She asked.

"I want to take Lyla away to the cabin next week. She's all huffy over Tara and Jax having a getaway night so I figured we should have one. Do you think you could watch the kids? I'd ask Tara but I don't want to overwhelm her."

"Sure." Madeline smiled at the humongous man. "But a word of advice? Pick somewhere besides the cabin. Make it special."

A smile lit his face. "Good idea. Thanks."

"No problem. Let me know times when you figure it out. I'm going to head back to the room." She moved past Opie and continued to the room. She shut the door and waited.

The wait for Happy proved to be a long one. An hour passed before he walked in. She had just been about ready to go looking for him. He locked the door behind him. "Told you to come in here not chat with Opie."

"He needed to ask me a favor."

"What?"

"Him and Lyla need a sitter because they're going away next weekend."

"What did you say?" He questioned as he loomed over where she was sitting on the bed.

Madeline shifted. She knew he was angry and it didn't make sense that he'd be angry over an invitation to baby sit. "I said yes."

"You didn't ask me."

"Didn't think it'd be a problem." She replied carefully. "Is everything okay?"

He wanted to snarl and snap at her but he held back. It wasn't her fault that the club had looked into her. That was on Jax. "Ask me first next time." He said gruffly. "And you should apologize to Quinn when you see him for giving him shit earlier."

"I didn't give him shit." Madeline recalled the conversation. "I just asked why I needed my gun." She explained. "I was about to thank him for agreeing to take me when he snapped at me and walked away."

"Just do it." Happy ordered.

"Fine." She replied and swallowed the hurt that she felt for him barking out orders.

"Good." He moved over to the door and unlocked it.

"Hap?"

"Yeah." He glanced over her and it was clear that he was annoyed. "What Mad?"

"I..." She swallowed hard. "I'm sorry if I pissed you off."

He shrugged his shoulders. "Gonna get a drink, play some pool."

"Okay." Madeline remained sitting on the bed. Truthfully, and perhaps childishly, she did so just to see if he would comment on it but he just left. He shut the door behind him and she remained where she was for a long time. She told herself that it was going to be okay, that everything was fine. They were fine. He was just having a bad day.

The stuff going on with the new crew was just putting pressure on him. Pressure that she'd added to by inadvertently pissing off his friend. In her opinion Quinn had pretty thin skin for a biker but she'd do what she'd been asked to and apologize. She rose to her feet and walked back into the clubhouse.

The party was subdued, much as it had been the night before. Immediately she spotted Happy near the pool table with Quinn. "Hi Hap. Quinn."

"Hey." Happy lined up his shot and took it. Two balls slid into the hole. He moved around the table and ran his hand over her back as he did so.

Quinn just nodded at her. "Quinn, I wanted to apologize. I'm sorry if I was rude earlier."

He nodded again. "Grab me a beer."

"Me too." Happy told her.

"Shit, bring me one too." Tig grinned from where he sat. "Anything else on the menu?"

"Watch your mouth." Happy growled as he shot the dark haired man a look.

Madeline got three beers from the bar, brought them back over and handed them out. To her surprise Tig thanked her and rose to his feet. "You can sit here. Watch your man." He all but pushed her into the chair when she hesitated.

The game was a good one, both men were equally skilled. Money was involved so that made the tension between the two of them higher. It was all in good fun though and when Quinn won Happy peeled off some bills from the stack in his pocket. "Good game."

"Yeah." Quinn agreed. "Now I need to find me a little entertainment for the night." His eyes roamed over the crow eaters scattered around the room.

Madeline resisted the urge to roll her eyes as he began to debate the virtues of each woman with himself. Happy listened with a smile but gave no real opinion on whether or not the black haired woman's tits were real or store brought.

She did notice however that there were less women around than normal and couldn't help but wonder if it was because rumors had gotten around about what happened to Butter or if because the missing women had been grabbed by this other crew desperate to make a name for themselves.

Madeline knew the terror of being abducted, held and hurt. It didn't matter that Tom or Brian or whatever his name had been was dead, there were still nights when she woke covered in a cold sweat with a scream in her throat. The worst were the nights when Happy wasn't there. Thoughts would creep into her brain and steal sleep away entirely. The days that followed were the ones when she chugged energy drinks and coffee to stay awake often finding herself shaking because of all of the stimulants in her system.

"You wanna play?" Happy's voice drew her out of her thoughts. He held out the cue in his hand.

She smiled and nodded. "We playing for cash?" Her eyes sparkled because she was good at pool.

"Nah." He grinned at her.

"Not that." Madeline knew just where his mind as gone. "Told you, I've never and..."

"For that Girl." He handed her the cue.

"So if I win, I get to do it to you?" She asked innocently.

"What kind of freaky shit are you into?" He asked with a laugh. "I ain't planning on losing so we don't have to worry about that."

"You should plan on losing. Cocky fucker." She teased, her tongue loosened by her drinks. Almost immediately after she said the words she regretted them. Had that been too far? Normally it wouldn't even be a concern but there was an undercurrent running through him since he'd been back that she just didn't recognize.

"Damn right I am." He growled the words and moved closer to her. "And you fucking love it."

"I do." She confirmed and because he was right there in front of her she stretched up and kissed him. Madeline kept it brief, sweet and soft. When she would have pulled back his hand snaked into her hair and held her tight as his mouth totally overtook hers. "I might be ready to forfeit."

He laughed, it was such a rare sound that she couldn't control her smile. "You say the word Mad and I'll go and ask Tig to hook me up with some lube." Happy laughed again at her expression. "Easy Girl, go on and rack 'em up."

He enjoyed the view of her ass as she leaned over the table. She was dressed in a pair of jeans, black flat shoes and a black shirt that had a low enough neckline. As always, she looked fucking amazing even if she was mostly covered. That was something else he liked about her, she never felt the need to flaunt her body in skimpy outfits. It was a good thing because he'd probably have killed someone already.

Happy still wasn't sure how he'd gotten so tangled up in her, emotionally invested enough that he was thinking about taking her up to Bakersfield to meet his mother. He'd fucked up last time he was there, mentioned her name. That was all his mother needed to hear and like a dog with a bone she'd been relentless in her search for details. He'd given them to her, watched a smile cross the face of the woman who had raised him.

"Come on Hap, you break." She told him. "And be ready to get your ass kicked."

"I've got Jack! And Jill!" Juice announced as he came over with a bottle in his hand and a blonde on his arm. "This is Jack. And this is Jill."

"Hi Jill." Madeline smiled at the woman who smiled back a little nervously.

"Jill, this is Maddy and that's Happy."

"Aw, that's cute Maddy and Happy. It like rhymes." The woman all but cooed at Happy.

Happy regarded her with a stare that would have sent a smarter person running but the woman only smiled wider. Madeline knew that she was right up Juice's alley. He didn't require conversation from his one night stands just that they didn't mind waking up ass naked on a pool table after a public show.

She'd walked in on the show one night and had actually let out a surprised scream. It had broken Juice's concentration and he'd ended up tumbling off of the table leaving the woman beneath him naked and exposed.

"Yeah, sort of." Madeline said diplomatically as Happy moved to take his shot. He sank two balls with one shot.

"You're solids." He grinned at her.

She took her first shot and missed. "Shit."

"A shot for every missed shot!" Juice suggested and set out a glass at the edge of the table. He glanced over at Happy after he spoke, a look on his face that suggested he'd just realized he should ask first.

Happy nearly called him out on it but he knew how much Madeline liked the young intelligence officer so he let it slid. He nodded and she reached for the shot glass and knocked it back without hesitation.

"Because shots are going to improve my game." She glared at Juice.

He grinned. "Sorry, rules are rules."

Madeline was half past drunk before too long. Happy didn't take it easy on her and when he sank his last ball she sighed. "I think I need more Jack." She frowned at the empty bottle and opened her mouth to call Juice and demand more but a hand closed around her wrist.

"Going to back out of our bet?" Happy's voice was a low growl as he tugged her to him.

"No." She told him and swayed slightly as she ran her free hand over his arm. "That would be a bitch move." Madeline stretched up and kissed him. "But I was serious about needing more Jack."

"I've got what you need." He released her wrist, grabbed her hips and pulled her against him so that she could feel him against her. When her lips curved into a smile he reacted on instinct.

Madeline gasped as he threw her his shoulder. Happy smacked her on the ass and started for the back room with determined steps. They were nearly to the door when someone said his name. "Are you fucking kidding?" She said just loud enough for him to hear.

Happy laughed and turned to face Quinn. "What's up?"

"Just heard from Yankee." The man shot a pointed glance at Madeline.

"He got anything new?" Happy stared at Quinn and waited for him to continue. The other man didn't. "Are you kidding me?" He demanded when he realized that he wasn't going to continue with Madeline there.

"Club business." Quinn said without hesitation.

Madeline bit back a sigh as Happy lowered her to her feet. "I'll go wait in the room." She felt Quinn's eyes on her as she stretched up to kiss him but she didn't let that stop her.

"Going to be a long wait." The bearded man told her. "We're riding out, Jax is waiting." He added with a small smile.

"Alright." All thoughts of what he was going to do to Madeline behind his closed door were forgotten with some regret. "Head on back or stay near Juice." Happy told her as he glanced around to locate the man.

"Okay."

"Be back as soon as I can." He leaned down and kissed her.

"I'll be here." And she would remain at the clubhouse like he'd asked with her gun handy even at work. Hopefully she didn't shoot any kids. "Be safe." There were other words that she wanted to speak but she didn't. It wasn't the right time.

"Always." He promised as he pressed his lips to her forehead.


	3. Chapter 3

_**CHAPTER THREE**_

Madeline looked over at the clock again. Sunday's were always slow and quiet. "Gonna be a while so stop clock watching." Juice informed her. "It's your turn." He pointed down at the cards in front of them.

"Got any sevens?"

"Go fish." He replied. "So, what did you think of Jill?" He asked. "She's been hanging around for a few weeks but last night was the first time that we hooked up. I think that she's pretty fun."

"Sure, she sounded fun." Madeline snorted. The sounds coming from Juice's room had kept her up for most of the night. She'd tossed, turned and finally swallowed two benadryl tablets to help her go to sleep. "Don't you want more than just fun Juice?"

"Right now?" He shook his head. "No. I'm not looking for anything more than fun."

"Then I think Jill is right up your alley." She told him as she picked up a few cards from the pile. "Maybe she'd be in to getting gagged or something because I kind of like sleeping at night."

The door to the club house opened and Tara walked in. It was obvious that she was annoyed even with her eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. "Hey." She said when she spotted Juice and Madeline. "You want to go with me to get my hair done?"

"I could use some deep conditioning." Juice quipped as he lowered down his cards.

"Sure." Madeline replied. "I could use a trim."

"Great. Let's go."

"I just need to grab my purse." She exchanged a look with Juice who just raised his eyebrows. "Everything okay Tara?" Madeline asked once Juice had wandered over to the bar.

"No." She replied. "And I really just need to get away from here."

Happy watched as Jury rose to his feet at the head of the Indian Hills table. "I've seen a lot sitting here through the years." The man said with a sigh. "Never thought that I'd see the day when heads were showing up in bags and a kid I liked showed up in four boxes on my back porch."

"We're going to handle that Jury." Jax told him. "Got Yankee and Quinn on it now."

"I know that you will Son." The older man sat down. "But I've come to a decision."

"What's that?"

"I'm stepping down, handing the gavel over. I can't do this anymore." He ran a hand over his face. "I did not make this decision lightly and I'm not going to change my mind. It'll go to a vote but I'm recommending that Whiskey take over the gavel."

Whiskey had been a member of Indian Hills for fifteen years. He was younger than Jury, probably would be more progressive and more willing to take risks that the other man wouldn't. That didn't make the decision any easier for Jax to swallow.

Happy saw his President struggling with it but eventually the blonde man nodded. "If that's what you want Jury, I have no objection." He rose and extended his hand to the man.

"I'm in this little scrap of lace and silk and when his phone rang he was off the bed quicker than I had my panties off! And that was quick." Tara fumed as the two women sat side by side on a park bench looking out at the small man made lake in the middle of Charming's only park.

It was the most private place that Madeline could think of on short notice. It didn't seem like a good idea to let the Doctor rant and rave in the middle of the crowded hair shop. "I'm sorry Tara."

"I know the deal. I know how things are but I... sometimes I wonder if I just should have stayed in Chicago."

"You wouldn't have Abel or Thomas if you did." Madeline pointed out. "I know that you're frustrated but what matters at the end of the day is that Jax loves you and you love him."

"Is that what you tell yourself about Happy?"

"Happy and I aren't at the same as you and Jax." She pointed out carefully. "We've only been together for four months." They'd met at the end of July and it was only the beginning of November. "We're not in the same place."

"But you're in love with him? Aren't you?"

"I..." She hadn't said the words out loud before and the first person who should hear them was him. "I care very much about him and I like to believe he feels the same about me."

"So you haven't told him?" Tara leaned in. "Maddy, you have to tell him. He should know."

"He knows that I care about him." Madeline felt herself beginning to get annoyed and swallowed it down. She and Tara weren't close by any means and this conversation was annoying her. "And we're fine the way that things are."

"Hear the old man is stepping down." Quinn took a seat next to Happy. "Change is coming through this club like an out of control freight train. You know what that means."

"What?"

"Means the guys like us got to be even more vigilant because outsiders are going to see change as weakness." Quinn lit a cigarette. "Might be time that you consider making this a more permanent thing."

"What?" Happy repeated again. He'd chosen the spot outside and away from the Indian Hills clubhouse for the quiet. His intention had been to call Madeline before it got too late. He knew that she had school in the morning.

"You and me riding together again." The bearded man said seriously. "The Club is going to need the Nomads more than ever now. Isn't anyone else who can do what we do, handle the shit we handle."

"You got a good crew Quinn." It was the truth. The guys were tough, loyal and for the most part absolutely fucking crazy. He liked each and every one of them, had been proud to ride with them.

"It's better with you. Look, think about it. I don't see how you can be content in Charming. It's not like you get to use your special skills there and we both know how much you like using them." Quinn grinned. "Remember that Mexican outside of Vegas?"

Happy grinned. "Course I do." The time that he'd spent riding Nomad had been full of nights like the one where they'd caught the Mayans trying to hijack a shipment moving from Tacoma to Vegas. It had been brutal, bloody and he'd gotten every single ounce of information that the man knew with only a knife and Zippo lighter.

"Just saying Hap, think about it. You'll see your Mom more. How is she doing?"

"She's alright." But the truth was she was still fading. He'd been so full of hope when he'd been able to get her out of the facility and back into an actual house with his Aunt that she'd be able to fight off the cancer invading her body. "I see her every couple of weeks."

"Ride Nomad again and I'll make sure you see her more than that." Quinn rose to his feet. "I know that you've got things tying you to Charming, time to put everything in order as to what's most important."

"You got a problem with Madeline?" Happy asked as he lit a cigarette for something to do with his hands.

"Nah, I got no problem with your little school teacher. Just don't want to see you tied down to something that you don't want." Quinn stretched his arms over his head. "Gonna head back in, find that little bitch with the big tits and nipple piercing."

Happy watched the man go. He had a lot of respect for Quinn. They'd rode together for five years. He trusted him and he was not a man who trusted easily but Quinn had always had his back.

This wasn't the first time that his relationship with Madeline had been questioned. Hell, he'd even questioned it himself. What was she doing with him? She had her whole life ahead of her and was beautiful enough to get any man she wanted. So why did she want him?

"Yo Hap." Jax came through the darkness. "What are you doing out here?"

"Drinking." He replied and picked up his beer. "Were you planning on telling me you investigated Madeline? Had Juice run her?"

"You know about that?" The younger man sighed. "Look Hap, it wasn't anything against you or her. At the time we didn't know anything about her and all that shit was going down. Kozik was hurt. The guns were stolen. I just needed to be sure that she was on the up and up. It was for the club."

"I vouched for her." His voice came out a low growl. "My word not good enough for you Teller?"

"I'm sorry Hap, but it was what was best for the club. Come on Brother, I adore Madeline but we didn't know anything about her." Jax replied. "And it came back clean, squeaky clean. She's a good girl and I'm glad that the two of you are together. You couldn't have picked a better Old Lady."

"She ain't my Old Lady." He replied automatically. Jax wasn't the first to say it but that wasn't how he thought of Madeline. An Old Lady was something he'd never thought that he'd have, something that he'd never wanted. Madeline was his girl, having feelings for her wasn't something that he'd planned. She knew how he felt about the term Old Lady, he wasn't too sure that she was thrilled with it either. But she was with him and he was with her. No matter who didn't understand it. Happy rose to his feet. "Next time you decide to pull some shit like that have the balls to tell me about it."

"Fair enough." Jax said on a sigh. "I didn't come out here to piss you off. Came out here because Yankee's got a lead on whoever left Calvin on Jury's back porch. Neighbor saw a van and that crazy son of a bitch managed to track it down."

"What are we waiting for?"

Monday morning it was a relief to leave the club house. Madeline's hair had extra bounce and shine from the deep conditioning treatment she'd treated herself to with Tara but her mood was anything but bouncy and shiny. The doctor, most likely with good intentions, had continued to press her for details of her relationship with Happy.

Finally Madeline had told her that she had to go, that she needed to pick up things for lunch. It was the truth but it was an excuse to get away from her. She'd spent an hour in the grocery store and then returned to the club house to lock herself in the room with a book, a bottle of her favorite diet soda and a box of chocolate she'd picked up on impulse while shopping.

She'd been so relaxed that she'd fallen asleep on the book, woken up with a start to realize she'd never set an alarm. Madeline prided herself on never being late so she dressed quickly and flew out of the room.

Never in a million years would she have expected to come face to face with one of her students doing the walk of shame out of Juice's room. "Ms. Walker?" The girls eyes widened.

"Tiffany." She stopped in her tracks. "What are you doing here?"

"I uh, well..."

"Tiff! You forgot your phone." Juice came rushing out of the room and grinned at Madeline. "Hey Maddy, you're late this morning."

"So is Tiffany. She's going to miss home room."

"Home room?" Juice blinked. "Wait a second, you said that you were eighteen!"

"I am." The girl protested and she dug in her purse to pull out her drivers license. "See, I'm eighteen."

"And still in high school. Fuck!" Juice ran his hands over his face.

"And not coming back here, ever." Madeline informed the girl. "Got it?"

"I'm an adult. I can do what I want." Tiffany replied. "What are you doing here anyway? Oh my God, you're sleeping with a Son?"

"She's with a Son." Juice seemed to snap out of his shock. "And she's right, you're not welcome here anymore."

"You certainly were welcoming last night." The girl hissed. "And this morning and after I got out of the shower."

Madeline groaned mentally. It was already a too much information morning, she didn't need to hear the run down of Juice's ability to get it up. "I'm going to work. Get her out of here Juice."

"Come on Tiffany." He took her by the arm. "Should have told me the truth."

The rest of their conversation was lost to Madeline as she strode through the club house. She said good morning to Bobby but didn't stop to chat. She didn't even stop for coffee and managed to arrive in class right before the first bell rang.

Happy looked around the house Yankee had traced the van back to. It was empty but obviously had only been recently abandoned. There was still food in the fridge and the bread left out on the counter wasn't even moldy. In fact it was fresh. "Was three people living here according to the neighbor." Quinn said. "Very nice lady." He added. "Might have to come back later and take her up on her offer of a cup of tea."

"Focus Quinn." Jax told him.

"They left this morning, probably after they realized that Yankee had tracked them here. She said they were quiet but there was a lot of foot traffic." Quinn leaned against the counter.

"If they rented a place here, they might have done the same thing in Charming." Happy commented.

"I'll get Juice on it. Check the place again." Jax looked around the kitchen. "I got a fucked up feeling about this whole thing, feels like they're not coming back here."

Happy nodded. He didn't think that they were coming back to this house either, there was nothing personal left. But he looked around anyway and it was in the small bedroom in the attic that he hit pay dirt. "Jax!" He called out even as his hands clenched into fists at his side.

The blonde man followed the sound of his voice into the room. "Jesus Christ." He took in the pictures posted to the walls. The maps of Charming, the lists of known associates of The Club. These guys had done their homework there was no question of that.

Happy focused on a picture of Madeline mixed in with the pictures of Gemma, Tara, Lyla and assorted crow eaters. He noticed a face had been scratched out. "Is that Butter?" He pointed at the picture.

Jax leaned in. "Yeah, I'd recognize those tits anywhere. What?" He added when Happy looked over at him. "I've got an Old Lady, doesn't mean I'm blind. Looks like they're keeping score." He ran his finger over the scratched out face.

"If these are the other targets..." Happy took a breath, tried to maintain control.

"We need to get back to Charming." Jax's jaw was set in a hard line.

Tiffany Clarkson was pissed. Pissed that bitchy ass Ms. Walker who came across so prim and proper was with a Son. Pissed that she'd caught her in the hall. And really pissed that Juice had told her not to come back. When she'd argued the point with him, he'd gotten angry and the sound of his shouting had brought another man over to them.

Immediately she'd recognized Tig and taken a step back. His reputation preceded him. He was mean, freaky and didn't take shit from anyone. "Fine!" She'd snarled at him. "I'm leaving you son of a bitch, sure didn't have any problem with me when your dick was in me!" That had gotten a smile out of Tig.

But she'd still gotten escorted through the door and to her car. "Don't come back." Juice had told her with a stern face. Tig had been standing right there so even if she could talk her way around the handsome Puerto Rican man she knew there was no way of talking her way around the dark haired man.

"Fuck!" The spoiled blonde teenager slammed her locker and glared down the hall to where Ms. Walkers class was. That bitch was going to pay. Given time Tiffany just knew that she would have snagged a Son and become an Old Lady.

There was a dull headache behind Madeline's eyes but she continued to grade the essay papers in front of her. She'd remained in her class room after the final bell, the empty school was a much better place to concentrate than the club house. Even on a Monday afternoon there would be music, the guys would be loud and she'd end up getting distracted.

Hours passed and she wondered how many of her students had even bothered to read the book and not just paraphrase from the Wikipedia page. She set down her pen and realized just how dark it had gotten outside. "Shit." She rubbed her hand over her eyes. It was time to head back.

The sound of boots in the hallway drew her attention. This time of late afternoon only the custodian should still be inside the school and the man always wore sneakers which made no noise. Madeline slid her top drawer open, stuck her hand inside the drawer and slid out the gun. She kept it in the drawer, her heart pounding in her desk.

The door opened and she only saw a large hand on the door. Seconds later she saw Opie's face and breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared the shit out of me."

"Sorry." He grinned at her. "Noticed that you weren't back on the lot, rode past and saw your car. Just wanted to make sure everything was okay."

"Everything's fine except for the heart attack that you just gave me. I could have shot you!" She told him. Opie was one of the guys in the club that she knew the least but she liked what she did know. He was a good dad and his wife certainly seemed to be deeply in love with him.

"You'd need a gun for that."

She took her hand out of the drawer and laid the gun on the desk. "Make sure you tell Happy that I almost killed you. He's insistent about me carrying this damn thing."

"It's good that you are." Opie looked over at one of the desks, considered sitting down and decided he'd break the damn thing. "You get the hang of it yet?"

Madeline blushed. Her few attempts at learning to shoot had earned her good natured teasing from the guys. She'd nearly shot her own hand once and one time had pulled the trigger and smashed Juice in the face from the kickback. "No. I'm really hoping to get lucky if I ever have to use it."

"Get your shit. I'll take you."

"Really?"

"Why not?" He shrugged. "How bad can you really be?"

"Remember you said that Op. Hey, where's Lyla been? I haven't seen her around and she hasn't returned my calls."

"We're uh, well having some trouble." The large man scratched nervously at his throat. "It's nothing personal against you that she ain't calling. She's just not very fond of SAMCRO at the moment."

"I don't take it personal." Madeline grabbed her things. "Can we take your bike?"

"Might be better if we take your car."

"Not sure you can fit in my car Opie." She pointed out. "And if you could, not sure my shocks could take it." The Camry that she'd purchased from Tom had disappeared by the time that she was well enough to walk out of the club house on her own steam. In it's place was a small sporty Mazda that had been left behind by the owner who didn't want to pay for repairs.

Madeline could see why. The car was a money pit, checking out fine whenever one of the guys looked at it and then breaking down with some major catastrophe days later. "You've got to get rid of that piece of shit." He pointed out. "You can just follow me."

"Do you not want to give me a ride?" She questioned.

"You ride with your guy Maddy, not his brothers." Opie told her, scratching at his neck again.

"Oh. I didn't think of that. I so was not trying to hit on you Opie, you're a handsome guy but I'm still not sure how you haven't crushed Lyla to dust yet. You're freaking huge, like a giant or some shit" Madeline told him.

"A giant?" He cocked an eyebrow at her.

"You know like in Jack and the Beanstalk? Oh shit, not that I'd ever want to see your bean stalk."

Opie turned several different colors and then burst out laughing. "Let's go smart ass."


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize from SOA. Maddy and everything else are mine.

A/N: As always thanks for the reviews, favorites and follows. Thank you so much for sticking with me and this story, I hope that you won't be disappointed. And oh, this chapter has adult content so if you're not into that or not an adult you've been warned.

CHAPTER FOUR

The ride back from Indian Hills had been a rough one, pushing the bikes as fast as they could go but finally they were back in Charming. First thing Happy noticed when they pulled in the lot was that Madeline's car was there. For once she'd listened to him and he felt a sense of relief he wouldn't admit to anyone, not even her.

"Church." Jax told them all as they got off of the bikes.

Once everyone was seated and settled he filled the guys in on what they'd found in Indian Hills. Juice went to work immediately with the bag of papers and pictures that they'd brought back with him. "I can probably tell where most of these were taken," he announced. "I can tell you already they were all done with long distance lens."

"Do your magic, find out who rented that house and get a list of all new rentals in Charming. Go back six months, that should be far enough," Jax told him. "If nothing pops there, go back another six months. They could be playing a long game."

"Got it," Juice replied with a serious nod.

"It's obvious that they're not going to just back down or stop." the President said seriously. "And they're not scared to use people connected to us to make a point. In Indian Hills they went after whores and a hang around. Here they went after a crow eater but those pictures, those pictures tell me that they're going to try and make a play closer to home."

"Wouldn't be the first time." Opie spoke up. "It was only a few months ago that Madeline got taken."

"That wasn't about the club, well not exactly about the club." Tig pointed out. "Not like this is. This isn't some psycho fuck with a drug habit."

"No, this is an extermination." Quinn spoke up. "Trying to take the club apart piece by piece. Succeeding in Indian Hills with Jury stepping down. Transitions are always tough, guys lose faith and vigilance."

Happy listened to the man speak. Quinn knew his shit, especially when it came to going to war. And this threat, well it wasn't like anything he'd ever seen. Sure, other clubs had decided to get bold and go against them but they'd never come at them sideways like this. Not through women and hang arounds.

The men nodded in agreement. "For now, this stays here." Jax motioned to the pictures and papers spread out on the table. "No need to get the women riled up."

"Can't leave 'em unprepared Jackie Boy," Chibs said.

"You know that my mother's carrying" Jax said and laughter broke out around the table. "Tara too."

"Madeline too," Happy volunteered. He rubbed his hand over the redwood table, at least he hoped she was because he'd asked her to.

"I can vouch for that," Opie let out a snort of laughter. "Damn near shot me when I stopped at the school today. As far as Lyla, she won't carry but she's uh going to her mother's for a few weeks so the kids can spend time with their cousins."

"You were at the school?" Happy asked.

"Yeah, I saw her car there and wanted to make sure she was alright," Opie explained. "Took her out to the old Cara Cara lot, tried to get her to actually hit a target."

Tig laughed. "Did she hit you like she did Juice?"

"No," Opie shook his head. "Missed every target by a mile for the first three clips. Last clip she managed to get two rounds into the target."

"Two rounds out of four full clips?" Quinn questioned. "Maybe you should get her a can of mace or something Hap. Hear they make pretty pink ones."

Laughter echoed through the room. Happy merely flipped his middle finger up at Quinn now certain that the man had some sort of problem with Madeline. He wasn't sure if it was her or if it was the fact that he'd found someone he wanted to be with.

Madeline cringed as she heard the key in the lock. She dropped the ice pack she'd had on her hand and kicked it beneath the bed. She tried to look like she'd just been flipping through the gossip magazine in front of her.

Happy shut the door behind him, flipped the lock. "The fuck you reading that shit for?" he teased.

"You know I like it." Careful not to jolt her hand she closed the magazine and got off of the bed. "Like you more," she told him as she approached.

"What happened to your hand?" He'd noticed the way she was cradling it when she got off of the bed. "Let me see."

"It's just sore because of the kick back," she explained. "I took Motrin, put ice on it. I remember from last time."

"Good. You want Tara to look at it?" He took her hand carefully in his, examined her wrist. There was no real reason to bother the doctor but he would have if Madeline asked. The way that he saw it there wasn't much he wouldn't do for her. For a long time it had been his Mother and The Club, those were the only two things he cared anything about. Now there was Madeline. Sometimes he didn't understand it. Mostly didn't understand why she'd want to be with someone like him but he wasn't going to question it. No, he was a lucky bastard.

Madeline shook her head. "No. It's fine," she sighed as his lips touched her skin again. "You just got home, we're not supposed to be talking."

Happy met her eyes. "So I should have jumped you without asking about you being hurt?"

"I wouldn't have complained." she moved closer to him. "I missed you."

"Missed you too." He released her wrists; grabbed her hips and pulled her close to him. She tilted her head back in open invitation.

Happy wasn't a fool, he wasted no more time talking and let his mouth cover hers. She moaned when he nipped down on her bottom lip and that was all that he needed to hear. His hands tightened on her hips, lifted her. Madeline grabbed for him as her back hit the bed. Happy ran his hand down her body and in between her legs. The heat from her core was obvious and he could only imagine how ready she was for him.

"Want me to show you how much I missed you?" Madeline ran her fingers over the back of his head, the slight stubble telling her that he hadn't shaved that morning. "Like last time?"

"Fuck yes," he replied. "We'll get there." Right now he wanted to show her how much he'd missed her. Small cries escaped her lips as his mouth found her neck. Happy had intended to be gentle and teasing but the taste of her snapped a piece of his self control. His teeth nipped down at her skin.

Beneath him Madeline's hips jerked. "Hap!" her hand dug into his back. "Fuck." She threw her head back and he did it again. "Shit, lower! I can't have freaking hickeys at work."

"Too late." He grinned at her before he took control of her mouth again.

Madeline was a little surprised when he broke away and roughly pulled her up to tug her shirt over her head. He pushed her back, grabbed the waist of her pants and she lifted her hips so he could get the material down. He stopped for a moment and just looked at her when he realized that she wasn't wearing anything beneath the stretchy material. "Hap?" she looked up at him, confusion on her face.

He moved forward and kissed her hard as his hand slid between her thighs. "Guess you did miss me," his voice was a growl and when he pressed a finger inside of her she cried out.

"Of course I did," her lips found his neck, his cheek and then his lips again. "I hate it when you go."

"I know." He stopped her from saying anything more with his lips and a smooth stroke of his hand. The only sounds that followed were those of their bodies moving with one another and soft moans.

He knew when she was close because her cries got louder. Not wanting to feel her around his fingers he slid inside of her and was rewarded with her body tightening around him. "Fuck." It took massive control to not let himself go right then but he held on, grabbed her legs and spread them wide so that he had the access he desired.

It was hard and fast, rougher than usual but Madeline could find no reason to complain. Truth was she loved the way that he was fucking her. It told her everything that his lips would never say. If there was ever a moment when she doubted being with him she only had to think of moments like this.

She loved the man moving inside of her and he loved her. The words would have to wait and the actions spoke more than they ever could. "Hap!" She cried his name and threw her head back. "Harder."

It was like she'd spoken the magic word. The thin amount of restraint that he'd managed to maintain snapped and he began to pound into her over and over again. His body tingled, clenched and when he spilled inside of her she let out a loud scream as her body began to jerk beneath him.

"I think I'm dead." Madeline mumbled moments later when he was collapsed on top of her.

A wicked grin spread across his face as he lifted himself up on his arms. "You ain't dead yet Girl." He rolled his hips to prove his point. "And I'm not done with you yet."

Madeline woke feeling like she was being strangled. Happy's forearm was around her throat. "Hap." She nudged him with her elbow. "Can't breathe." He grunted in his sleep and held on. With a smile she reached her hand between them.

"Don't start something you're not going to finish." He warned her with a growl as he shifted his arm. "Sorry," he added.

"Fine, I won't start. I've got to get to work." Mornings like this made her hate her job. She really wanted nothing more than to remain in bed with him. "Can we go back to the house yet?"

"Nah." He reached out and pressed a hand down on her hip. "Gonna pick you up after work, going back to Cara Cara."

"Hap, I'm never going to be good with a gun."

"Ain't expecting you to turn into Lara Croft, need you to try to get comfortable though." He waited because he knew that she was going to have questions.

"Is this about the other club?"

"Yeah."

"They're still here? Not back in Indian Hills?" It wasn't hard to connect the dots as to why he Quinn and Jax had taken off.

"Yeah, they're here." If he could have he'd have told her everything but Jax had made the decision. What they knew was just for the club for now; there was no harm in making sure she kept her eyes open and her guard up. "Pick you up at four. If I'm not there, someone else will be and they'll take you."

"Alright." Madeline said evenly while hoping that if he didn't come he'd send anyone but Quinn. There was something about him that put her on edge but she couldn't say that because she knew that he was a close friend to Happy. Someone who he trusted.

"Be careful today. Keep the gun close. Got me?"

"Yeah, I got you." She turned her head and kissed him. "I'll text you."

Happy nodded and watched her dart to the bathroom. She was showered and dressed in twenty minutes with her still damp hair twisted up into a bun. Her work clothes were conservative, a pair of dark gray pants with a button down shirt. "Gonna be hard to keep your balance in those heels later." He pointed out as she came back to kiss him again.

"Figure I can't get much worse."

Teller-Morrow was swamped that day likely because it was the first day that everyone was there and working. Even Quinn was trapped under a mini-van working on getting a set of brakes replaced.

Happy was working on a shitty little Toyota when Juice walked over to him. "Hey." He crouched down. "Sorry about that chick."

"What chick?" Happy asked.

"Uh, Maddy didn't say anything?"

"About?" Happy lowered the wrench in his hand just in case.

"Fuck." Juice ran a hand over his head. "I hooked up with this blonde. She was hot. She was young but I didn't realize how young until we ran into Madeline when I was walking her out the next morning." He sighed as Happy continued to stare at him. "She's uh well she's a student at Maddy's school. She's legal though, showed us both her identification." The man continued to talk but Happy had tuned him out.

He was surprised that Madeline hadn't said anything to him. A little pissed too. "Fucking kids Juice?" He said finally.

"Dude, she was hot!" Juice protested. "I wouldn't of if I realized." He added.

What could Happy really say? It was an honest mistake, these young girls going to all sorts of lengths to make themselves look older. Same thing had nearly happened to him at a strip joint in Lodi about a year back. "Don't sweat it." He said after a minute. "Sure everything will be fine."

But even as he said the words he wondered trouble this was going to bring to Madeline. She loved her job, lit up when she talked about the little hellions that she taught. Well, at least some of them. He knew that she'd have been happier with younger kids but when she got through to one of the teenagers she saw it as a battle won.

"Hey there." Madeline looked over at the familiar friendly voice and smiled. Lia Esber was the school's art teacher and one of the few teachers close to Madeline's age that she liked. The only one that she ever really talked to. Her only friend really and it was nice to have a friend outside of the club.

"Hey."

"What's up?"

"Just waiting for Hap or someone to come get me."

"What's wrong with your car? I can give you a ride."

"I'm going to do something with them, no big deal." But Madeline had been dreading it all day. Honestly dreading it especially if it wasn't Happy who picked her up. "What are you up to tonight?"

"After the day I had? A carton of ice cream, pack of cigarettes and my remote control." Lia leaned against the car. "These kids." She shook her head. "Sometimes I think about going back to taking portraits at Sears or something."

"Tell me about it."

"You know what we need? A girls night! What are you doing Friday?"

"Probably the usual." The usual for her these days was spending a few hours at the Samcro party then ending up half drunk in Happy's room watching television or playing with one of Juice's many electronic toys. "What are you thinking?"

"Drinking. Dancing. Debauchery. Not necessarily in that order." The dark haired woman replied with no hesitation. "Nothing too out there. Your guy scares the freaking pants off of me."

She'd met Happy once or twice when he'd been picking up Madeline from school. True to who he was he'd never said much, just nodded in recognition and maybe a hello. "He is not that scary." Or at least Madeline had never been scared of him.

Not even the first night that they met, well until he'd started yelling but she'd known that was out of anger at what had happened to him once she'd allowed herself to think about it. Even when he'd busted into her hotel room and questioned her she'd never really feared for her safety.

"So you say." Lia grinned. "Look, here comes some guys on bikes."

Madeline looked to where her friend pointed and felt a wave of disappointment. Even from a distance she knew that it wasn't Happy riding towards them. No. It was Quinn. Her stomach clenched with nerves but she relaxed a bit when she realized Juice was with him.

A light bulb went off in her head. "Hey Lia, you're still single right?"

"Yes," the woman said cautiously. "Why?"

Juice really needed to meet someone who wasn't a crow eater or barely legal. "I want you to meet someone." Madeline smiled as the plan began to form in her mind. Lia eyed her suspiciously as the bikes drew closer.

The men pulled up in front of them. "Hey Maddy." Juice was smiling as always. "You ready?" He asked and then glanced over at Lia. His smile widened. "Hey Maddy's friend."

"Hi Quinn." Madeline said politely and the man grunted in response.

"You ready to do this or what?" He asked and she nodded. "Follow me. Head back to TM Juice, I got it from here."

Fuck. Madeline smiled. "Hey Lia, wasn't your car making a weird noise? Maybe Juice will take a look. He's a great mechanic."

"Uh, it was..." Lia cleared her throat. "It so made a funny noise this morning but I don't want to keep him from anything."

Juice bounded off of his bike. "It'll be my pleasure."

Madeline grinned to herself and got in her car to follow Quinn to the Cara Cara lot. Honestly she'd have preferred that Juice come with them but what could she really say about it now? Once they arrived she got out and walked over to him.

"I ain't Hap, Opie or Juice. I'm not going to find you fucking up firing cute. This is serious. You pay attention."

"I got it."

Thirty minutes later Madeline wanted to either cry or turn the gun on the man. She wasn't sure which would be more satisfying. Maybe she could do both at once? Cry while shooting at him? If only she knew that she wouldn't miss it might be worth the chance.

"Again." Quinn barked. "Line up the sight, squeeze the trigger slow and then do it again. Two shots. No hesitation. GO!"

Madeline did as he demanded. She'd been following all of his orders and she'd had slightly more success than the day before with Opie. She'd burned through three clips and hit the target five times. One glorious time right in the chest! But that wasn't good enough for Quinn.

"Again." He told her and stepped closer. "Just like I said but this time think about the fact that the bullet is going to be tearing through flesh, into organs, blood is going to be every fucking where."

"Pleasant image." Madeline replied as she braced herself.

"Ain't meant to be pleasant." He told her. "Meant to be the truth. This isn't a video game. This is life. Someone comes at you they aren't going to stop because you're some pretty little fucking school teacher. They're coming at you to end you."

She lined up the sight of the gun as he'd shown her, squeezed the trigger twice and watched the bullets miss their mark. "Fuck."

"He'd die for you." Quinn said as he stepped away.

"What?" Madeline asked to buy time although she knew very well who and what he was talking about.

"Don't play stupid." His voice was a growl. "He'd die for you and you aren't even going to be able to protect yourself. Get your shit, we're done here."

Happy had a beer in his hand and a shot on the bar. "I want to sleep for like four fucking days." Kozik was on the stool next to him just back from a trip to Tacoma. All of the charters were on high alert for this unknown threat and the pressure was starting to get to them.

"So go to bed." Happy told him. "Where's your girl?"

Kozik let out a stream of curses. "Don't know. Don't give a fuck." It was obviously a lie but it was his lie. Happy made no comment and just sipped from his beer. He knew his friend well enough to know that whether he stayed quiet or spoke Kozik would unload on him anyway. That was how the blonde man was and it didn't bother him at all.

Happy listened to the latest installment in what he personally thought of as Kozik's soap opera. It made him glad that shit always went so smoothly with Madeline. She didn't freak out like a little bitch about things. And she had the most even temper that he'd ever seen.

Just a few minutes later he wondered if he'd jinxed himself as she came storming into the door with a pissed off expression on her face. She breezed by him without saying a word and went into the back. "Trouble in paradise?" Tig questioned with a chuckle.

Quinn followed her in at a much more sedate pace, his expression one of amusement. "So that went fucking well. Hey Kid, give me a god damn beer." He told the prospect behind the bar while running his hand over his beard.

"What happened?" Happy glanced over at the man.

"Hit the target six times out of three full clips. That girl has no business carrying a gun. Someone comes after her, they're getting her Brother. Sorry to say it but someone fucking has to."

"No one is touching her." Happy told him in a cool tone that meant he was dangerously close to losing his cool. "Ain't happening. I won't let it."

"Can't be her shadow and do your job for the club Hap." Quinn laid a hand on his shoulder. "I know it's a hard truth to swallow but she ain't cut out for this."

Happy heard someone suck in a sharp breath as he rose to his feet. Quinn remained where he was despite the menace Happy knew was on his face. He took a step forward but then Jax and Opie were between the two of them.

"Take it outside. Take it to the ring." Jax told them. "Settle it because we don't have time for this shit! Not with everything going on. So do this now and then squash it. Got me?" His voice carried through the now silent club house. Even the slowest crow eater had stopped speaking.

"Come on Brother, I'll tape you up." Kozik offered.

"Don't need any tape." Happy kept his eyes on Quinn's.

"Me neither." The large Nomad replied with a grin. "Let's do this."


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of SOA. I only like to take them out and play gently with them. Well, sometimes not so gently but still that doesn't make them mine.

A/N: You guys are great. The response to this has been amazing. I really don't have words for it and I've usually got words. So as always, thank you. Thank you so much. Here's the latest chapter, I hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it.

CHAPTER FIVE

Madeline had heard every word of the argument, well almost every word. She didn't know what Quinn had said to Happy. She'd only seem the look on the man's face. It was disgust; He didn't like her. That much was obvious.

At first she hadn't been able to figure out why but then he'd said what he had on the Cara Cara lot. Happy could protect her; would protect her to the bitter end and she couldn't even protect herself.

When Jax had suggested the fight she'd started to move forward but the crowd had blocked her way. Frustrated she shoved her way through intent on stopping the two men whatever it took. Tig grabbed her arm as she was moving past the bar. "Leave 'em." He told her, his voice a hiss in her ear. "This is how we settle shit."

"They're going to hurt each other." Madeline had seen other fights. She'd enjoyed other fights, watching Happy go against members from other charters was actually sort of a thrill. This wasn't thrilling. She knew just how much respect there was between Happy and Quinn. He considered the man a friend and now they were going to fight.

"Maybe a little," Tig grinned. "You've seen fights before. This one ain't no different. Come on." He released her arm, motioned for her to follow him.

Madeline stood at the edge of the ring moments later with her lip caught between her teeth as nerves roared to life in her stomach. They eased a little when he looked over at her and walked over to the ropes.

Happy crooked a finger at her and she stepped closer. "Stop that." He was talking about the way she was biting her lip. "You think I'm going to lose?"

"No." A small smile crossed her face. Madeline wanted to tell him that she hated he was about to fight a friend over something to do with her but she bit her tongue. "You never lose."

"That's right." Happy ducked between the ropes, kissed her lightly. Madeline might not be Gemma, Tara or even Lyla; she wasn't the typical Old Lady but damn it she was his. She wasn't going anywhere.

Madeline stayed next to Tig as the men began to circle one another. For a long while it seemed like neither would make the first move then Happy struck. His fist connected with Quinn's jaw. After that it was a brawl. She couldn't keep track of the blows. They were moving too fast. Blood coated both their hands and their faces.

She'd thought that she was going to be sick but instead found herself to be oddly turned on at the show of brute force. Finally Tig jumped into the ring and along with Jax, Opie and Chibs pulled the two men apart.

Madeline held her breath and watched as the two men embraced. A cheer went up through the crowd. Whatever had sparked the fight was hopefully over. She moved closer to the ring and watched as Happy slipped out.

Happy looked over at her and his face said it all. Madeline moved to him without hesitation and took in his split lip, swollen eye and the bright red marks on his ribs that would soon be angry bruises. "Come on." He took her hand and started to move. She stumbled but managed to keep up with him.

They went to his room and he shut the door. "I'm sorry."

"Fuck you sorry for?" He asked as he moved into the bathroom and spat blood into the sink.

"You fought because of me right? Because of something Quinn said?"

"That doesn't matter." Happy turned on the water and rinsed his mouth out. All things considered the damage wasn't too bad but his ribs were going to be killing him the next day. One was probably cracked. He'd need to get Chibs to look him over and tape it up.

"Matters to me." Madeline moved forward and grabbed a wash cloth. "Sit down, let me do it."

He sat down on the toilet and let her work on patching up his face with the meager supplies that were in the ancient first aid kit beneath the sink. He couldn't help but smile at the concern on her face, the way that her hands shook slightly. "Gonna be fine Girl. Relax."

"Is there anything else I can do? Should I get Chibs?"

"Nah, just get one of those ace bandages from underneath the sink. Need something around my ribs."

"Are they broken? Should we go to the ER?" Madeline asked and then realized how dumb the question was. "Shit. I really just asked that." She knelt down and began to paw through the items beneath the sink.

"Mad."

"No. It was a dumb question." She made a face as she picked up a half used bottle of lube. "We so need to clean this out just for the record."

"I got plans for that." He said when she launched the bottle into the trash.

"You better plan on getting a new bottle if I'm involved in those plans." She smiled at him and sat down to lean against the wall. "Today was a disaster." It had been on her mind since she'd gotten back in her car and headed towards the club house. "And Quinn said something, probably something like he said to you and he's right."

"What did he say to you?" Happy demanded.

"That you'd die to protect me and I can't even protect myself. It's true Hap. I hate it but it's true. I'm never going to be bad ass. Never going to learn how to shoot." The truth in the man's words had been what pissed her off the most.

"Mad, I don't need you to be a bad ass." He rose to his feet and held out his hand to her. She took it willingly and he pulled her up. "Just need you with me. You with me Girl?"

"I'm with you."

"You ain't going anywhere." He pulled her into a hug.

Madeline wrapped her arms around him, rested her head against his chest so that she could hear the steady beat of his heart. The sound grounded her. "I'm not going anywhere." She held him tighter.

"I got to grab a shower, change and then we'll head back out there."

Tig looked over at Quinn. "Want more ice?" He said with a trace of a smile.

"Yeah." Quinn took a long drag off of his cigarette. "You got something to say Tig, out with it."

"You're wrong about the girl." Tig knocked back a shot of Jack Daniels. "Can't believe I'm saying this but she is cut out for this shit. When she got took, bitch was tough after. Up and moving around the next day. Knew what the fuck Hap did to the guy and didn't bat an eyelash." Knew what he did and hadn't said anything. She'd just given him a hug the first time she'd seen him after and whispered a thank you in his ear. "Not all Old Ladies are Gemma."

"God help us if they were." Quinn let out a snort of laughter. "Ain't got nothing against her but Killa needs to have his head in the game. She's a distraction."

"You aren't going to let this go, are you?"

"Nothing to let go. He's got to make his own mistakes."

Madeline proceeded to drink more than she should have on a school night but the liquor just made being in the club house easier. Never one to really mingle she usually stayed close to either Happy or Juice but tonight she remained practically glued to Happy's side. He didn't seem to mind and did as he usually did. He drank, talked to his brothers and played a few hands of poker.

When Quinn approached the table to sit down for a hand Madeline held her breath. Happy looked over at the other man and they exchanged a long stare. Finally Quinn sat down at the table. "Deal me in Kozik, what the hell are you waiting for?"

"Money on the table Quinn." Kozik said with a grin. "And when I win the money from all of you, I'm going to go to bed a happy man."

"Keep talking shit Blondie." Tig snarled. "Only thing you're going to bed with is empty pockets and a bottle of lotion."

"Bite me." Kozik flipped up his middle finger. "Are you going to play Madeline?"

"No. I'm good." She replied. "Besides, the stakes are just too rich for my blood. Teachers don't make much you know." She took a sip from her beer and smiled. Alcohol was an amazing thing, very relaxing. She didn't even really mind Quinn's presence at that moment.

"You need some cash? I'll spot you." The blonde man grinned lewdly at her but she knew that it was all in good fun.

"I'll pay you to do something lewd to me." Tig added with a grin and got a middle finger in return.

Happy was used to his brother's teasing Madeline. He didn't mind it. Tig was always going to be a little inappropriate and Kozik was just a flirt. "Either of you ready for the ring?" He questioned. Both men laughed. Quinn remained silent with a look on his face that said he found no source of amusement in the conversation. "Mad doesn't want to play tonight. She needs to get some rest."

"I do? I've gone to school hungover before you know." Madeline took a sip of her drink and studied him. Something was going on behind those onyx eyes. She wasn't quite sure what.

"Ain't going to school tomorrow." Happy looked over at her and saw the confusion on her face. "Got to call in sick. We got something to do."

"Okay." She said easily. "Got sick days for that reason." It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him where they were going to do but she held back. "If that's the case I should probably head back to bed."

Happy nodded. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Just need to make some money off of these fools for gas for tomorrow. Gonna burn a tank heading up to Bakersfield."

Madeline felt her mouth drop open but then she smiled widely. Bakersfield. Bakersfield was where his mother lived. She forgot all about any insecurities that had built inside of her over whatever had happened with Quinn and leaned down to kiss her man on the lips. "I'll be waiting. Kick their asses."

"With pleasure." Happy watched her as she walked back through the club house. Pleased that the crow eaters hanging around made sure to scurry out of her way. He'd dashed their hope that things might end with Madeline when he'd gotten into the ring with Quinn. He hoped the fight had sent the message through to everyone loud and clear. That was his girl.

Madeline held on to Happy tightly as he guided the bike down the street he had told her was his Mother's. It was where he'd grown up and she couldn't help but look around and try to wonder what it had been like when he was a young man. Picturing him as a kid brought a smile to her face.

He brought the bike to a stop in front of a tan ranch style house. There was a large truck in the driveway and she wondered if someone was moving but didn't mention it. "You okay?" He'd been worried that she wasn't used to riding and the trip would have been too much for her.

"Aside from being seriously nervous?" Madeline slipped off of the bike. "I'm fine."

"Don't be nervous. She's going to love you." He reached out and took off her helmet. "Try not to cuss in front of her and don't tell her that we sleep over together."

"What?"

"Don't mention more than just us dating. She's real old fashioned about shit." He replied and watched her eyes open with fear. "And if she asks, and she will ask, you're a virgin."

Madeline was quite sure that she was going to be sick. "Don't you think you should have warned me of all this before I came here?"

He was enjoying teasing her, watching her squirm with nerves. It reminded him of the first night that he'd barged into her hotel. Questioned her about the night before. She'd stood her ground but just like now she couldn't seem to stay still. "One more thing Mad." He kept his face serious with real effort because he wanted nothing more than to laugh.

"Fuck my life. What else? Does she think you're like an accountant?"

Happy laughed. "Hell no. Relax Mad, just fucking with you."

"You are not getting laid for a very long time." She told him though it was a lie. Madeline let out a relieved sigh. "That was really mean." But she was smiling as he pulled her towards him. "Is she really going to like me?"

"She's going to love you Girl." He pressed a kiss to her lips. "You'll see."

"Well are you just going to stand outside all day?" A female voice called out from the porch. Madeline turned her head to see a pretty olive skinned woman with a shock of long dark hair streaked in the front with gray. Her eyes were as dark as her sons.

"We're coming Ma." Happy called out. "Come on." To Madeline's surprise he held her hand as they walked towards the porch. "Ma, this is Madeline. Mad, this is my Ma Evelyn."

"You can call me Eve." The woman was beautiful but Madeline could see the signs of illness. Her eyes were as dark as Happy's but slightly dulled and it was obvious that she had lost weight from the way that her clothes hung on her. That didn't seem to slow her down any though as she smiled widely. "Come on inside, don't give the neighbors more to talk about than your bike."

"Screw the neighbors," he replied. "Let 'em say something to me." His voice had the familiar growl to it.

Eve just shook her head. "You and I both know that they won't. Please don't give your Aunt Ana anything to fuss about."

"Where is she?" He questioned. "Ma's sister," he explained to Madeline. "Lives here with her, takes care of her."

"She's out shopping. I told her to still go even after you called last night." Eve focused her intense gaze on Madeline. "I want as much time alone with this one as possible." At her son's expression she added. "Don't worry. I won't torture her while you're taking care of the lawn. Look at it, it's way too high."

Happy smiled but it was a little grim at his mother using the word torture. "Right now Ma?"

"Sun isn't getting any higher. We'll be fine, right Madeline?"

"Right." Madeline replied as nerves began to tear at her stomach. "Just fine." She added and didn't really convince Happy. He leaned in and brushed his lips against hers.

"Don't go starting that before you mow my lawn." Eve said sternly. "So, do you like tea?"

"Love it." Madeline replied as the woman took her arm. She was lead inside a neat house with pictures on the wall and well worn but well taken care of furniture. The kitchen was spacious, sunny and there was a pot of something bubbling on the stove.

"I'm making beef stew." The older women explained as she put on a kettle. "It is one of Happy's favorites."

"It smells great."

"Thank you. So Madeline, do you cook?"

"Every chance that I get." She replied. "My kitchen is no where near as great as this one." She looked around again. This was like her dream kitchen especially with the center island. "I really love to cook."

"Do you cook for my son?" Eve sat down and motioned for Madeline to do the same. "Don't be shy Chica. I do not bite."

"Yes, I cook for him."

"Good. Boy needs home cooked meals. So, a teacher?"

"Yes." Madeline pressed her hands together nervously. "I usually teach a lower grade but the school board put me with the seniors this year. I like it though, very challenging."

"My son can be very challenging." Eve said directly.

"What man can't?" She felt sweat forming on her palms. The whole meet the parents thing was not her strongest area. She'd babbled like a fool when she'd first met Justin's parents all those years ago and now she was terrified that she was going to throw up on the gleaming tiled floor. "Anyway, I like a challenge."

"You like my son?"

"Of course I do."

"Do you love him?"

"I... Well... I..." Madeline floundered for words. She'd never in a million years expected that question. "I care about Happy very much." She said finally. "He means a lot to me."

"Let me tell you something about my son." The woman leaned in, lowered her voice. "He loves you." Life flashed in her eyes as she reached forward and placed her hand over Madeline's.

"Excuse me?" Madeline nearly tumbled off of the chair. "Why would you say that?" She stuttered out the words as her stomach tied itself into tight knots. Eve patted her hand in what she assumed was supposed to be a comforting gesture but honestly it just scared her even more.

"You are here, aren't you? Know the last time my boy brought someone home to meet me?" The woman grinned. "He had a full head of hair and only four or five tattoos. So you being here, that tells me what I need to know from him. Now I need to know where you stand."

"I think he should know first." Madeline told the woman and immediately knew where Happy had gotten his intense stare from.

"Fair enough." A wide smile crossed her face. "Is he treating you right?"

"Of course he is. I've never been happier."

"Maybe it's time that you had a talk with him, tell him what he should know first." Eve rose and lowered the flame beneath the stew even more. "In fact, I feel like I need a nap. You should take him a beer."

"It hasn't been... I don't think he's ready to discuss that yet. I don't think that I'm ready." Madeline let the words rush out and watched Eve with desperate eyes. "I..."

"Why not?" Eve cut off whatever she was going to say.

"It's only been a few months." Madeline replied. "It hasn't been long enough. We're just..."

"Take it from someone with a terminal illness chica, life ain't long enough." Eve smiled softly. "Don't put off to tomorrow what you can do today because you never know. Tell him dinner will be ready in two hours. I'm sure that'll give you enough time to talk."

"Why are you encouraging to tell him? Especially when I told you that I'm not ready and I'm damn sure that he's not either." She stared at the woman and didn't look away. If she knew anything she knew that moving too fast would be a kiss of death for the two of them.

She saw the way that he reacted when people called her his Old Lady, it wasn't pretty. At first they had been honest slips of the tongue. Now people did it just to get a rise out of him especially people named Tig.

"Oh sweet girl, I'd like to have at least one grand child before I die." With that the woman left the room. Honestly, Madeline was shell shocked. She turned off the kettle and took two beers out of the fridge.

She found Happy outside with a tool kit working on the lawn mower. "Brought you a beer."

"Thanks Mad." He looked up at her and frowned. "You alright Girl?"

She handed him the beer and sat down next to him. "I'm not sure." With a shaky hand she undid the top of her beer. "Your mother really loves you."

"She's great." He replied without hesitation. "Told you that she'd love you too."

"Speaking of love." Madeline cleared her throat. "She told me something that I wanted to ask you about." Nervously she ran her fingers around the neck of her beer bottle. "And I think asking you might piss you off."

"Takes a lot to piss me off towards you Mad." He put down the wrench he'd been holding. Happy brought the bottle to his lips. "You want to know something just ask."

"She said you love me." Madeline blurted out the words. "She says she knows you do because you brought me here. Is that... is it true Happy?"

"What do you think?" His face kept the same neutral expression.

"I think... I don't know what to think." She admitted, her gaze falling to her hands. "I do know that I'm in love with you." Madeline wanted to take the words back immediately but they were said. Maybe it had been Eve's statement about life being too short or maybe she was just tired of not saying the words. Either way they were said. She braced herself for the fall out and looked over at Happy.

His face gave nothing away. It never did. His eyes just stared into hers. Happy's grip tightened on the bottle in his hands. "Knew that already Mad. Probably ain't the smartest move you've made in your life." He took a sip from the bottle.

Madeline frowned at him. "I just told you that I love you and you tell me I'm stupid for it?" She cocked an eyebrow at him. "I thought that you'd... you know what forget it. Forget that I said it because I wasn't going to. I don't want to chance shit between us. I'm not asking to be your Old Lady or chasing your crow like it's some sort of prize! I just want you. Only you."

Happy reached out for her as she went to get up."Look at me." He ordered and she brought her eyes to his. "You got me Girl. Wouldn't be here if you didn't. Haven't brought someone home to meet my mother in a long time."

"She may have mentioned that. She's a little scary. I see where you get it from." Madeline let out a shaky laugh and slid her body closer to his.

"Ain't got to be scared of me or of her." He pressed his lips to hers. "Where'd she take off to?"

"Said she needed a nap."

Concern immediately crossed his face. It was just another reason for her to love him. "I'm going to go check on her. This lawnmower is toast. Got to pick her up another one, do the yard."

"What can I do?" Madeline asked. He grinned down at her and she recognized the look in his eyes. "Don't start. You just said that you're going to check on your mother."

"We're going to check on her." He led her towards the house. "Then we'll get the new mower and do that lawn. Wait, is that beef strew I smell?"

Madeline should have known that there was going to be some let down from the day. It had been a good day. She and Happy had purchased his mother a new lawn mower, nearly got arrested for public indecency in the Home Depot bathroom, returned to cut the lawn and had a great meal with Eve.

The woman was a fire cracker, that was for sure. And Madeline liked her, liked her a lot. The feeling seemed mutual as the woman gave her a big hug and kiss before she left. "I will be seeing both of you soon, right?" She'd looked at her son with smiling eyes.

He'd told her that she would, watched over her while she got ready to go to bed. He made sure the house was locked up and stood there staring for a moment before they got onto the bike. "Come on Girl." He'd told her. "Time to get you home."

Madeline had enjoyed the ride back, her arms wrapped tightly around him. Her face pressed to the leather of his cut inhaling the smell that was so distinctly him. There was no question in her mind that she loved Happy more than anything she ever had in life.

And he loved her too somewhere deep down she knew that. The words just wouldn't come easily for him. That was fine. If he suddenly started to be all emotional and talk about feelings she'd only think that something was wrong.

Happy would pat his hand over hers as they stopped for a light and it made her smile and bury her face deeper in the soft leather. There was no place that she would rather be than at his side. No matter what.

The Welcome to Charming sign flashed past them. Moments later as they turned into the Teller-Morrow lot she felt her stomach sink. A pit of sickness formed and grew by leaps and bounds. Everyone was outside at the sound of the bike. They all wore grim expressions. Something had happened.

"What is it?" Happy asked as he stopped the bike, not even getting off.

"Let's go to Church." Jax told him. "Darren." He snapped his fingers and the newest prospect came running. "Keep an eye on Madeline." He ordered.

"Fuck." Madeline whispered because she knew that whatever had happened was particularly bad. Her fingers dug into Happy's sides as he parked the bike quickly. She slid off and he grabbed her arm and tugged her forward.

"Behave." He told her. "Don't give the kid too much shit."

"I'll try." She shut her eyes as he kissed her and pulled back when she wanted to just wrap her arms around him and never let go. "Be safe."

Happy released her wrist and watched her walk inside. His attention turned to his Brothers and followed them into the chapel. Once they were at the table Jax cleared his throat. He nodded his head at Quinn was spoke. "Yankee's dead."

"How?" Happy asked, his voice thick. He'd known Yankee since he was a prospect and had liked the man the kid became.

"Ambush on the Charming and Lodi borders." Jax said in a harsh voice. "Ran him off the cliff. Sheriff's are calling it a tragic accident."

"Son of a bitch." His throat was tight. His fist was clenched. "Do we know anything?"

"Juice found three possible houses that they could be at. We've been waiting on you. Gonna split up, hit 'em all at once. Wouldn't put it past them to have more than one place." Jax's expression was grim. "This needs to end. Do we need to vote?"

It was clearly obvious that they didn't. They quickly split into groups, left the chapel and headed to their rooms to prepare. For Happy that meant getting some of the arsenal he had in his room. He found Madeline on the bed, a cigarette in her hand and a nervous expression on her face.

"I got to go." He told her as he took the bullet proof vest from the closet and slipped it on. "Just got to grab my shit." He took a duffel out of the closet and laid several items down on the bed.

The guns and knives didn't scare her anymore. She saved her fear for what could go wrong and she knew that shit could go wrong. Something had gone wrong today. Madeline wanted to ask but she didn't. She stayed quiet and watched him.

"Stay here." He barked the order. "Call out of work if I don't come back tonight." He slid his guns into his holsters. "Take this," he handed her a sheathed knife.

Madeline opened her mouth to protest but didn't. Though she was far from sure that she'd be any more capable of stabbing someone than shooting them. There were a million things that she wanted to say but couldn't say anything now except for her standard when he left. "Come back."

Happy just leaned in and kissed her. There were no more words needed and when he left the room he was sure that she'd do as he asked. If he wasn't able to come back, well he wasn't going to think about that. He was just going to have to come back. No matter what.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own SOA. I just play with them.

A/N: Here's the latest installment for you lovely readers. As always, I am thankful for all the reviews, follows and favorites. It makes me smile every time I get an alert. I know that there's been more tension in this than in Finding Home but just trust me, the reasons for everything will be revealed in due time. Enough rambling, I'll let you get to reading.

CHAPTER SIX

Madeline didn't go to work again the next day. She sat in the club house with Chuckie while Gemma pretended to work in her office. The mechanics were out in the bays and there wasn't a crow eater in sight. "You want another cup of coffee Maddy? Or maybe something to eat?"

"No thanks Chuckie. Any more coffee and I'm going to start climbing the walls or spinning around on the stripper pole." She cast a glance at the door where she knew the prospect would be lingering. Darren was taking his orders to watch her very seriously. It was driving her just a little bit nuts.

"The guys would like to see that." He said quickly, probably without thinking judging by the way his expression changed to one of terror.

"I'm sure they would." Madeline smiled and watched the man relax. She rolled her eyes as her phone rang. "One second. Hello? Hi Principal Snyder." She said cautiously. "Yeah, I'm still going through one hell of a stomach bug." The words normally assured that the person on the other side of the conversation would hastily change the subject. Except Madeline would have rather kept talking about stomach trouble instead of hearing that she needed to be at school at 8 sharp the following morning to meet with the disciplinary committee. "Can I ask what this is about?"

"A complaint has been made by a student Ms. Walker. It will be addressed tomorrow." With a hastily added pleasantry that she should feel better the man ended the call.

"A complaint?" Madeline asked the dead air of the phone. "Fucking great." She growled. "Chuckie, get me a beer." She wanted something stronger but it was probably not a great idea to get plastered the night before a hearing that could determine her future as a teacher. What fucking complaint?

The houses in Charming had been a bust. Two were occupied by families and the third was as empty as the house in Tacoma had been. Or almost as empty. One of the morons had dropped their smart phone. Juice had gotten information out of it in record time.

Another address. A house in Oakland smack dab in the middle of the small overlap of Mayan and One Niner teritory. In other words, a war zone. There was no splitting up and rushing in. Things had to be done diplomatically so Happy sat leaning against the rail of the parking deck as Jax and Opie stood talking to Alvarez and Laroy. All of the Presidents looked equally pissed. The sudden wave of violence had struck all of them equally hard.

Now was the time to strike. And Happy wanted to strike. His fingers were itching for it. He needed it. Things had been slow lately. Too slow. He was starting to get a little twitchy inside no matter how composed he always seemed.

Next to him Juice shifted restlessly. It had been a long night full of disappointment at finding the house empty. Then they'd stayed on the road, Jax had contacted the other Presidents and now it was more waiting. "So, um do you know anything about Maddy's friend? The artist?"

Happy looked over at him. "Not really." He replied. The unasked question of why hung in the air and the younger man smiled. "Dude, no hitting Mad's friends and ditching them. Gonna bring shit to her." And then he'd bring shit to Juice.

"Nah, not like that. Well, I want to sleep with her. Have you seen her? She's got this..." Juice trailed off realizing his mouth was running away with him again. "Just saying, she seems nice." He said finally.

Happy just eyed him and then looked back over to see that the three Presidents were shaking hands. Whatever the deal was it had been made. "Alright, let's go." Jax told them.

"What are we going to do Jax?" Juice questioned.

"It's time for shit kicking." The blonde man smiled.

"Maddy?" Tara sat down on the edge of the bed. "Maddy?"

Madeline's eyes flew open. "Tara, what happened?" She'd been sleeping for several hours after giving up on slowly drinking her beers. Her mind had alternated between worrying about Happy and worrying about what was going to happen to her at the hearing the following day. And what complaint? The only thing that she could think of was Tiffany being pissed over getting kicked out of the clubhouse. But what would she have gone to them and said?

"I'm not sure." The woman admitted. "But some of the guys are hurt. I need a hand. Do you think you can handle it?"

No, she didn't think she could handle it but she nodded her head. "I can do it. Let me get dressed. Is it..." Her breathe caught in her throat. "Is it Happy?"

"Jax didn't give me any details." Tara replied. "But Happy is a tough son of a bitch so I'm sure that he's fine." The brunette patted her arm. "Get dressed and meet me in the Chapel."

Madeline dressed in record time, a pair of tights and one of Happy's tee shirts. It probably looked ridiculous on her but she didn't care. She threw her hair into a haphazard bun and tried to forget that she needed to be at school in a mere six hours to face a disciplinary committee.

Somehow that didn't matter as she helped Tara drape the table and set out gauze, sterile water and a variety of surgical tools. Finally there was the sound of bikes and the sound of the van doors opening and closing.

The club house doors opened and chaos followed. The only members unscathed were Jax and Opie who immediately moved over to hug their Old Ladies. Madeline scanned the crowd of guys coming in. Where the hell was Happy?

As if she'd conjured him by thinking of him she watched Kozik and Tig come through the door. They were basically dragging him between them. His face was a mask of pain and his left leg was dangling uselessly as his Brother's pulled him along. And there was blood. So much blood.

For a moment she froze, time slowed and the only possible thing she could think of doing was screaming. Then Happy's eyes met hers, full of pain. A sudden sense of calmness and clarity came over her. "Get him in there." She glared at Kozik and Tig for just standing there. "Tara!" Her panic was clear in her voice.

Tara looked over as they walked in. "Uh, on the table." She told the men as she continued to stitch the back of Juice's head. "Maddy, get his pants off." Tig snickered and the doctor gave him a look that had him stifling the sound with a cough. "Use the scissors." She added still looking at Tig as if daring him to say anything else.

Happy let out a grunt as he was laid down on the table. "Mad." He watched as she grabbed scissors from the tray. "Mad." He repeated because he wasn't sure she'd heard him. When she looked at him he saw fear in her eyes. "You can go back to the room. The guys can do it."

"No." She began to hack at his jeans with the scissors. "Stay still." She exposed his entire leg and felt her stomach churn at the sight of the jagged cut down the side of his thigh.

"Don't faint on me." Tara told her sternly as she came over. "Breathe."

"It's nothing. Just a scratch." Happy told the doctor.

"Yeah, a scratch from a saber tooth tiger." Tara quipped. "I need sterile water and Betadine." She ordered and Madeline moved to get the items.

Her hands were shaking so bad she almost dropped them but she didn't. She had to do this. Had to help. "What do I do?" She asked Tara.

"Wash it out, really well with the sterile water. Then cover it with the Betadine and I'll come over to stitch it. It's deep Hap." Tara was all business. "Gonna keep you laid up at least a few weeks."

"Fuck." He hissed. His attention turned to Madeline as Tara walked away. "Mad."

"I'm not trying to hurt you." She doused the wound with the sterile solution and watched his hands clench into fists. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault." He watched her for a few more minutes, careful not to show any sign of the pain that was radiating from the wound. "Mad. Look at me." She brought her eyes to his. "You with me Girl?" He questioned.

Finally there was something in her eyes besides fear. Slowly she nodded. "I'm with you."

"That's my girl. Doing good." He smiled to encourage her.

"There's something stuck in here." She leaned in. "Fragment of something."

"Knife tip. Get the Doc and she'll pull it out." At least now he knew why the pain was worse than he thought it would be. "It's nothing Mad, nothing at all."

"Tara, there's a piece of the knife stuck here." Madeline called out the words and realized she'd never expected to speak those words ever in her life.

Tara had her hands full trying to pop Chibs shoulder back into place without making the wound to his upper arm bleed anymore. "Alright Maddy, it's an easy fix." The doctor's hair was slipping out of its ponytail and there was a thin sheen of sweat on her forehead. "Get a pair of tweezers and pull it out. Pull it out as quick as possible so you don't cause any more damage."

"Nah. She doesn't have to do that. It can wait."

"The longer you wait the more likely infection is to set in. You want to lose the leg?" Tara barked. "Maddy, just do it. You can do it." She had delivered her pep talk and immediately turned her attention back to Chibs.

"I've got to get the tweezers." Madeline crossed the room without looking over at Happy. She couldn't think about what she was going to do, she just had to do it.

Happy watched the utter concentration on her face as she bent down and gripped the shard. "I'm sorry." She glanced over at him. "I love you."

The words spoken out loud within ear shot of all his brothers dulled the pain as she pulled the shard out. Seconds later she was pressing gauze against the spot. "Shit. Fuck. Shit. Tara! He's bleeding."

Quinn ambled over. "Nicked a vein pulling it out." He told her. "Put more pressure on it. Fuck, give me that. Go on and get out of here." He replaced her hand on Happy's leg. "What you waiting on Girl? I said go."

"She stays." Happy growled the words. "Get more gauze Baby."

Madeline looked over at him and blinked. He'd called her baby maybe twice since they started seeing each other and never in front of his brothers. She got more gauze and did her best to stare Quinn down so that he would move his hand.

"You." Tara approached the table and pointed at Quinn. "You and your dirty hand get out. Madeline, get over here with that gauze. Hold it down, both hands." She looked over to Quinn who hadn't moved. "I said take your dirty hand out of my somewhat sterile field." The brunette kept her eyes on the man until he moved. "Alright, Maddy as much pressure as you can manage. Tig, get me some tequila."

Madeline glanced over at Quinn. The man obviously had something to say but must have realized that going off on the President's wife wasn't going to solve shit. He grumbled something about bitches and left the Chapel.

"What's the tequila for?" Happy questioned as he opened his eyes again.

"Gonna give you a few shots, a pill for the pain. Then I'm going to take a few shots and see if I need to cauterize that vein." Tara told him. "Maddy, you good?"

"Yes." Madeline carefully controlled her breathing so that she wouldn't hyperventilate. "But I'll take a shot if there's anything left." The moments seemed to pass by extremely slowly as Tig returned with the bottle and Tara popped a pill into Happy's mouth.

"Got to give it a minute to kick in. Keep the pressure on." Tara slugged back a healthy amount of the tequila and handed the bottle to Madeline. "Drink, you'll feel better for it."

She held the bottle with one hand, hissed at the feeling of the liquid burning down her throat. "Tell me what to do next Tara."

Happy watched her assist Tara through a rapidly darkening haze. When the doctor asked Tig for his lighter he gritted his teeth and reached out and grabbed Madeline's wrist. "C'mere." He growled at her. "Don't watch."

"I can take it. I can do this."

"You already did it Girl." His grip tightened on her wrist until she turned to face him. He released her wrist and slid his fingers through hers. Madeline could only stare. He'd called her Baby, was holding her hand. "What are you looking at me like that for?"

She smiled and leaned down to whisper. "You're holding my hand."

"So?" He demanded with a grin that defied the pain he felt as Tara spread open the wound. He tightened his grip on her hand. "You want me to stop?"

"No." She went to straighten up but his other hand slid into her hair. "Hap?"

"Just look at me. Nothing else."

Madeline immediately remembered the aftermath of her attack when he'd sat with her, held her down and told her that it was going to be okay. He didn't need the words or reassurances. That wasn't who he was. But the way he was holding her told her that he needed her.

It felt awkward with all eyes on them but she rested her forehead against his. "You came home."

"Told you I would." He clenched his jaw. "Fuck."

"Squeeze my hand." She whispered. "It's okay, I can take it."

Happy let out a growl of pain but she remained where she was even when she thought that her hand was going to break under the pressure of his grasp. "Okay. I did it." Tara exhaled loudly. "Need to sterilize the wound again and then stitch it."

"I can clean it." Madeline offered as she pressed a soft kiss against Happy's lips. He smiled up at her and she knew by his vacant expression that the drugs were working their magic. He released her hand a moment later and she realized he was passed out.

"It's the best thing for him Doll." Tig told her. "Once the Doc gets him fixed up we'll get him to the room." He watched as she methodically cleaned the wound. "You should take a break, get some air. I'll sit with him until Tara's done."

"No." She shook her head. "I'm staying with him until it's done."

"Suit yourself." Tig dragged over a chair. "But sit the fuck down before I've got to hear his mouth that you busted your head open fainting on the table."

Madeline never made it to sleep that night. Even when the guys had brought Happy back to the room she'd just laid there looking at him.

"What are you staring at me for?" He asked when he opened his eyes around the time that the sun came up.

"Just because." She smiled and ran her hand over his chest. "Got to tell you something."

"What?" His voice became hard, defensive. Fuck. This was it. This was the moment she'd had enough and was going to leave. "Mad?"

"Earlier today the school called. I've got a meeting at eight with the disciplinary board. There's been some complaint against me." She continued to stroke her fingers over his skin. "I can't not go but I can't leave you."

"You're going." He shifted and pulled her closer. "Because you ain't done anything wrong." He studied her face. "You think it's the girl that Juice banged, don't you?" He sighed as she nodded. "I'm going to kill him."

"Wasn't his fault."

"So?" He cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Hap." She smiled and pressed her face against his chest. "What if they fire me?"

"There are other schools, Lodi and shit. Or you just stay home." It must have been the drugs that had him saying this shit. "Stay home and I'll take care of shit."

"Hap, we're not even officially living together. All your shit is here."

"So?" He repeated with a small smile. "You're with me, right?"

"Always." Madeline pressed her lips to his chest. "I'm just scared." It had been a day full of worry and a night full of terror. She'd never be able to fully explain what had gone through her head at seeing him hurt. Probably would never be able to understand how she'd kept it together, helped Tara and hurt him removing that piece of blade from his leg.

"Don't be scared." Happy pulled her even closer to him, ignored the pain as her leg brushed against his. "Ain't gonna let nothing hurt you Girl."

"I know." She brushed her lips against his. "But I'm hurting you right now." Carefully she shifted her leg off of him and wedged herself against his side. "I've got my alarm set." Her voice was getting thick with sleep.

"I'll make sure that you're up." He watched her lower her head and shut her eyes. In minutes her breathing had evened out and she was asleep. Happy watched her and wondered how he was going to kill Juice when he couldn't even stand.

The disciplinary committee consisted of the principal and two other teachers. All wore grim expressions as Madeline entered the room.

She knew that she looked like shit. She'd managed to get maybe an hour of sleep before Tara had woken her; maybe half an hour after she'd finally closed her eyes and stopped staring at Happy. He'd been sleeping when she left and Chucky had promised to keep an eye on him when she was gone.

"I'm still not feeling all that well." She told them. "Can we just get this started?"

"Indeed." Principal Snyder opened the file on the table in front of him. "Let's get right down to business. A male student came to my office the other day. We've redacted his name for his safety."

"For his safety?" Madeline repeated, extremely confused but starting to get a really bad feeling in her stomach. "If I've been accused of something, I have a right to know who my accuser is."

"This student informed us that after you having an issue with his behavior in class, you went up to him and proceeded to threaten him that if he acted up again you would have your 'Old Man' take care of him."

"It's a lie. I don't have an Old Man. And even if I did I would never resort to threatening a teenager." It was ridiculous to her that they would even entertain the idea that she would do such a thing. Her record was spotless.

"But you are dating a member of the Sons of Anarchy, are you not?" The teacher who spoke was older, very set in her ways and basically an all around bitch.

"That's none of your business."

"This school has a morals code in the contract Ms. Walker." Principal Snyder said with what could only be described as a smug smile. "Fraternizing with a member of a motor cycle gang certainly violates that."

"The Sons of Anarchy are not a gang, they are simply a bunch of guys who like motorcycles and share a brotherhood." Madeline's voice was hard, cold and detached. It was the only way she could keep the fear from coming through. She would not show them fear, couldn't show them fear.

"And I'm a fuzzy yellow duckling." Mrs. Reynolds drew herself to her full height in the chair. "We all know what those men are, what they are capable of! It is a disgrace for a teacher at this school to have such associations."

"If I could interject," Mr. Carpenter spoke for the first time, "We have no concrete proof that this student is telling the truth. If we're being honest with ourselves, he has been problematic all year."

"Thank you." Madeline looked over at the man with a smile. He was one of the older teachers, had never paid much attention to her. Or in her opinion to anyone, honestly she suspected he was just riding out the school year so that he could retire.

"It is not something that we can ignore." Principal Snyder replied. "It is my recommendation that Ms. Walker be suspended until we can take this matter to the school board."

"I second that!" Mrs. Reynolds glared daggers at Madeline. "I am not comfortable with her having any contact with the student body until then.

"I disagree." Mr. Carpenter cleaned his glasses with a handkerchief from his pocket. "And would like to state for the record that this seems to be turning into a witch hunt."

"Majority rules." Principal Snyder said with almost too much satisfaction. "Ms. Walker, you will be contacted when the second hearing in front of the school board will take place. Until then please get off of school property. You are of course entitled to union representation."

Fuck off. Go to hell. Kiss my ass you smug half senile bastard. All of those statements rolled through Madeline's head but she said none of them. Instead she rose to her feet. "I do believe that I will do that."

With that she stalked out of the class room and by the time she was halfway down the hall everything seemed to catch up with her. Blinded by tears she ducked into the teachers lounge, probably not the best place for her with all things considered, and sat down heavily on one of the couches.

"Hey. Is everything okay?" Lia crouched down next to her and laid a hand on her leg. "Maddy?"

"I got suspended." She blurted out the story. "I can't be here, I've got to go."

"These assholes." The pretty brunette fumed. "I'm going to go in there and give Principal Snyder a big piece of my mind. Half of these teachers walk around like a bunch of zombies, handing out work sheets and teaching through movies! You actually work and care about these kids."

"I'm glad that you have my back but don't jeopardize your job. It'll all work out." She knew that to be true because on way or another this was going to end. "I need to get back to Teller-Morrow."

"I can drive you. I've got a free period which is why I was in here stealing someone yogurt." The woman smiled. "Let's go. I'm sure that someone can bring you back later for your car."

Lia obviously had ulterior motives for driving her back to Teller-Morrow because as soon as they arrived she spotted Juice, ran a hand through her hair and went over to talk to him. At least Madeline knew that she could still smile because she did as the two started to talk.

The smile faded from her face as Quinn walked over to her. "Hi Quinn."

"You got the guy with no fingers watching him?" The man demanded in his trademark gruff tone. "Doesn't sound like you love him to me."

"Doesn't sound to me like you'd know what love was if it kicked you in the balls." She snarled the words. "You don't know shit about how I feel for him or about how he feels for me. You don't like me, fine. Don't like me. I don't give a fuck but stay out of my face."

"Need to learn how to watch your mouth." Quinn advised her.

"Problem here?" Tig walked over and placed himself between the two of them. Madeline glanced over and saw that Opie and Kozik were walking over as well.

"No." She told Tig. "I'm going in to check on Hap. Everything is fine here."

Chucky had taken good care of Happy. He'd straightened up the room, brought him in breakfast and coffee and was sitting in the arm chair across the room from him doing his level best not to be intimidated by his glaring stare.

"Thanks Chucky. I'll take it from here."

"I accept that." The man took off without a backwards glance.

"He was just trying to help." Madeline pulled off her suit jacket and looked over at Happy. "How do you feel?"

"I'm alright." He grunted. "What happened?"

"I'm suspended." Madeline admitted. "I'm going to tell you what happened but you have to promise me that you're going to let me handle this."

"Handle what?" Happy growled the word and patted the side of the bed next to him. "Get over here Girl and tell me."

"First you have to promise," she said. "I'm serious Hap."

"Ain't promising shit." He replied as he watched her take off her shoes. "Tell me." His tone left no room for argument.

"A male student says that I threatened to have you kick his ass if he didn't behave in my class. They won't tell me who. I don't even have any idea. Plenty of the kids give me shit, they're teenagers."

"Did you?" Happy watched as she frowned.

"Did I what? Threaten a student with you?" The absurdity of it made her grin. "Of course not. Though it is a good threat."

"I'd kick his ass for you." He offered in the hope that it would make her smile. It didn't. "Quit pacing and sit down," he told her. "You're making me dizzy walking around in circles."

Madeline sat down. "It's got to go to a meeting with the school board. Once that happens, I'll know if my suspension is a permanent thing." She managed a small smile when he brought his hand up to stroke her face.

"We'll figure it out."

"I know that we will." Madeline leaned in to him. "They gave me some shit about the Sons and my moral clause too." She felt him stiffen against her.

"Fuck." He exhaled. "What did you tell them?"

"I told them the truth, that you're a bunch of motor cycle enthusiasts with a real sense of brotherhood." She smiled as he began to laugh. "So, I might have to take you up on that offer from last night."

"What offer?" Happy knew damn well what she was talking about but wanted to see what she would say. He hadn't really thought that she'd give any consideration to what he'd said. She was too head strong at times but it was one of the reasons that he couldn't imagine life without her.

"You said that..." her eyes narrowed as she studied him. "You big jerk, you're teasing me again." She smacked his arm.

"Yeah." He admitted. "Can't help it. I like seeing you squirm."

"See if I squirm over you anytime soon." Madeline molded her body to his. "I never even asked you what happened last night."

They'd talked about this before. While she didn't carry the title of Old Lady, he knew that she wanted to know everything just as he knew that he could trust her with whatever he said. But that didn't mean that he was going to give her every bloody detail. Carefully he edited the story in his mind before he began to speak.

"We found where they were hiding. They had rented a house, shitty neighborhood basically a war zone. So we went in." It had been a blood bath. The group of men that were there hadn't stood a chance against the three groups united. "Got everyone who was there but we're not sure it was all of them. Should be enough of a message to have any of the fuckers that are left running for the hills."

"How did you get hurt?" Madeline shut her eyes and stroked her fingers over his chest. She could feel the beat of his heart and it calmed her. No matter what had happened he was still here, still breathing.

"There was a guy down, everyone thought he was dead. He wasn't." He remembered the man letting out a primal scream and shoving the knife into his thigh and ripping down. The burning pain had brought him to his knees; he'd killed with with a single blow to the face with the butt of his gun. "He is now."

"Good," Madeline said ferociously.

"Blood thirsty little bitch." Happy wrapped his free arm around her. It was the same sort of reaction that she'd had about Tom. It still blew his mind that this peaceful woman next to him could accept the violence that ruled his life without blinking an eyebrow.

"Damn straight," she replied. "You need anything? A drink? Painkillers?"

"Got everything I need right here."


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that you recognize. Everything else is mine.

A/N: Again, thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites. I was going to wait to update but I'm feeling craptastic tonight so I decided to make myself feel better by sharing with you all. Any mistakes are mine, my sinuses are NOT conductive to editing tonight.

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Are you sure that everything is okay?" Lia glanced over her shoulder for what had to be the tenth time at the man walking behind them. "I mean, we're at the mall and you have a body guard with you."

"He's not a body guard." Madeline looked back at Darren and waved. "He's a prospect. Think of this as a hazing ritual. Being forced to follow me around the mall and carry my bags." That was a lie. He was a body guard but explaining that to Lia would just be complicated. "I'm sorry about tonight. I know that you wanted to hang out."

"Eh, it's okay. Honestly, I'd rather stay at home in bed with my man than go out to a meat market." She grinned. "Juice asked me to go to a club party with him tonight but I don't know."

"It does get a little wild." She admitted but she didn't think that it would bother Lia too much. "You should go if you want." Juice would keep an eye on her and that should avoid any major incident.

"I don't know. I've seen the girls that hang out there, I certainly am not going to expose half of my skin or wear heels made for breaking your neck. Besides, we've only been seeing each other for a few weeks. It's seriously casual."

"How casual?"

"Like not past second base casual." Lia's cheeks flamed red as Darren began to laugh behind them. "Oh my God."

"You shut it!" Madeline whirled around to face him. "And if you even think about repeating that I will hurt you."

"My lips are sealed." Darren had a wide smile on his face. "I won't say anything. The guys treat Juice like he's an idiot now, they'd get his head examined if they knew that he was slow rolling with such a pretty lady." He shot Lia a charming smile.

"You are such a kiss ass." The brunette rolled her eyes. "Anyway, how's Happy doing?"

"He's doing better." Madeline had lied to her friend and told her that Happy was involved in an accident on her bike. "Think that he's going sort of stir crazy at the house." But in a few days it would be a week and then he could at least get up and walk around again. It would be at least a few weeks before he could ride again and she knew he couldn't wait for that.

"At least you've got the time off from work." Lia said. "Did you hear about a date for the school board hearing?"

"Actually, I did." To say that she wasn't looking forward to it would be the understatement of understatements. "It's Monday, first thing."

"I've been asking around and no one can figure out who it is. Don't worry, I'm discreet. Discreet is my middle name. And everyone that I've talked to is really rooting for you. That includes your students, they hate the substitute."

"That's something." Madeline forced herself to smile. It had been weighing on her mind heavily that she could lose her job. "I just hope that the school board sees this is all crap."

"I'm sure that they will." Lia attempted to be comforting but her doubts carried through in her tone.

More and more Madeline was starting to seriously consider that after all of her hard work; the years that she'd spent to achieve her degree were going to go down the drain. If that happened, what would she be left with?

"It's a nice place." Quinn looked over at Happy and back around the room. "Not all pink and shit."

"You really come over to talk about paint colors?" Happy questioned.

"Nah. Wanted to let you know that I heard from Miami today. They're having some trouble, told 'em I'll head down and bring my best guys with me." The bearded man met Happy's eyes with his own. "You're one of the guys I have in mind."

"Appreciate the offer but I'm not interested in Miami or riding Nomad." He sat up as straight as he could in the bed. Fuck, it pissed him off that Quinn hadn't waited a few days until he was on his feet again. Instead he was sitting in a damn recliner like an invalid. "When you riding out?"

"Tomorrow. If you'd have been interested you could have met us there when you were ready. You end up changing your mind. You let me know."

"Ain't gonna." Happy felt his teeth grind together. "Thought that if we fought this shit would be behind us." If he could have he would have punched Quinn in the face again, right there where the bruise was on his cheek. "The fuck is your problem with my Old Lady?"

"Your Old Lady?" Quinn questioned. "Know you love her Brother, I get it. But a woman like that, only a matter of time before the appeal of being with a bad boy wears off and they want something else."

Happy got to his feet and the pain was stunning but he stood straight and tall. "You don't know her Brother. That won't happen."

Silence hung heavily between them for a moment as they stared each other in the eye. "Had a girl like that once. No one could tell me shit either," Quinn finally spoke. "You get yourself better Brother. Samcro needs you."

"Stay strong." Happy slapped Quinn hard several times on the back as they embraced.

"I'll see myself out. Later Brother."

"Later." Happy waited for his former president and friend to leave before he let himself sit back down. It was immediate relief and he reached for one of the pain pills that sat on the table Madeline had moved next to the chair.

Quinn's revelation certainly answered some questions but it only created more. What had happened to make the man so biased towards Madeline? Though it did not really matter because nothing was going to change his mind about her. Happy remembered his words. _"The fuck is your problem with my Old Lady?" _

"Happy, I'm home!" Madeline's voice carried into the room as the front door slammed. "You hungry? I stopped and got Mexican."

"Yeah, thirsty too. Bring me a beer Mad?"

"You take any pain pills today?" Madeline set the bags down on the kitchen table and pulled out her purchases.

"Nah."

"Liar." She mumbled under her breath but grabbed two beers out anyway. She opened them and set them near the food as she put away the paper towels and dish detergent for the kitchen before carrying the bags and beers back to the bedroom. "Hey."

"Hey." Happy looked down at the bags in her hands. "Couldn't have made two trips? You're going to drop something."

"I can handle it." She set the food down on the bed, passed him a beer and dropped the food bags down to the floor. "I thought that Juice was hanging out with you today?"

"He's cleaning his room." Happy told her with a smirk. "Think he wants to impress your art teacher friend."

"I hope he used copious amounts of bleach and fire. Fire is always good." Madeline smiled at him. "Thought that Chibs was coming over today."

"Don't need a baby sitter," he informed her. Happy took a long sip of his beer. "You have fun with Juice's new girl?"

"She's got a nap Hap. And yes, I did. Despite the baby sitter you sent with me. That poor boy had to carry these little pink striped bags through the mall."

"He'll live. What's in 'em?" He recognized the bags immediately and he was already getting turned on.

"You'll see after we eat dinner." She took two plastic trays out of the bag. "Got yours extra spicy just the way that you like it."

"You know what else I like?" A smile curved over his lips.

"I'm almost scared to ask," Madeline replied. "What else do you like?"

"You eating dinner in whatever is in those bags. Come on Mad." He motioned down at his leg and the sweat pants he was forced to wear because they were loose.

Madeline studied him for a moment, sure that she was going to do as he asked just so that he'd smile, but she'd at least play it cool at first. "I don't know Hap, might be kinda awkward to just sit here in a thong, panties and heels and try to eat tacos."

"Heels?" He eyed the bags. "I don't see no shoe boxes."

"I've got plenty of shoes. Remember those purple ones I couldn't find anything to match?" Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she reached for her beer and took a long sip.

"Fucking killing me here."

"Sorry," but they both knew that she wasn't. "Are you sure that it's a smart idea? I mean you know that Tara said we shouldn't have you exerting yourself unnecessarily."

"Not like I'm going to jump you." He said but wasn't very convincing. "Up to you," he added in an attempt to call her bluff.

"Don't pout," Madeline shook her head.

"I don't pout."

"Yes you do with the little trembling lip and puppy dog eyes," a shriek of laughter escaped her throat as he grabbed for her. It was common knowledge, at least to him, that she was as ticklish as could be. All it took was his hands moving over her sides and she was hysterically laughing. "Okay. Okay! You don't pout."

"Damn right. I don't pout." He released her but let his hand linger and run down her side. "Now get your ass up and put on something sexy."

"Ordering me around?" Madeline cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah. You got a problem with that?" Happy met her eyes. "Asked you a question Girl."

"No, I don't have a problem with that." She leaned in and kissed him.

"Why not?" Happy questioned.

"Because I love you." More and more he was saying things that let her know he wanted to hear the words; so she said them. She kissed him again. "Give me a few minutes to change?"

"Take your time," he reached for his beer. "You know I appreciate all this shit right?"

"All what shit?" Madeline asked.

Happy sighed. He hated talking about things like this but he just had to open up his big mouth. "You could have left me at the club house," he said finally.

"That wasn't going to happen because the second I left for any reason there would have been a stampede of crow eaters waiting to give your sponge baths and suck your dick."

"So you'd rather be the one giving me sponge baths and sucking my dick?" Happy laughed when she blushed.

"Damn straight." Unable to resist him she leaned back in and kissed him again. "Start eating your food before it gets cold. I'll be back in a minute."

"Alright," he looked up at her.

"What?"

"What do you mean what?"

Madeline chuckled, "I know that look Hap. You've got something going on in there," she reached out and tapped her fingers against the side of his head. "Wanna tell me?"

"Want to go back and see my Ma once Tara says it's okay for me to ride?"

"Of course. We could go now if we took the car."

"I can't fit my legs in that little cage but I'll see if we can borrow the van." He needed the trip to Bakersfield, needed to clear his head and figure out just how to go about doing something he'd never thought that he'd do. Him with an Old Lady, maybe someone should have taken him to the hospital because it was quite possible he was losing his mine.

"I can ask Lia to use her SUV if the van's busy. She likes driving the Mazda, says that it makes her feel like she's in a low budget version of The Fast and The Furious. Oh, have you seen that? You would love it."

"The van shouldn't be a problem," he replied with a smirk. "And no, haven't seen it and don't want to."

"It's a really good movie." Madeline protested. "Fine, you can pick the movie again tonight even though I'm going to be the one catching a cold because half of my tits and ass are hanging out."

"Turn up the heat, you'll be fine." Happy threw his head back and laughed as she flipped him the middle finger. "You know that you're going to do that later, don't got to remind me."

Madeline snatched the bags off of the bed; her cheeks flamed red to match her hair. "Just for that, you're not even getting a hand job but I will bring a bottle of lotion out for you." She bent down to grab a shoe box out of her closet. A glance over her shoulder told her exactly what she'd suspected, he was watching her ass.

Happy kept his eyes on her as she added a little sway to her step before she shut the door to the bathroom behind her. "Fuck." He said softly. He had an Old Lady. Now what the hell was he going to do with her?

Madeline turned and nuzzled her body tighter against Happy's; yet even in sleep she was aware of the wound on his thigh. She groaned as his phone began to ring. "I hate your phone."

"Better be good." Happy reached out for the phone. "Yeah?" he listened for a moment. "Okay, see you in five." He ended the call and patted Madeline's ass. "Get up Girl, put some clothes on. Chibs is coming to drop of the van."

"I need to shower first." She pressed her lips to his chest. "Give me twenty minutes."

"Yeah, right. Going to be more like forty minutes." Happy groaned and rose to his feet.

"Will not," she said defensively. "I'm not going to wash my hair so it won't." Madeline got to her feet and grabbed his discarded tee shirt to put on.

"Why do you put on clothes when you're just going to the shower?" He questioned because he always wondered.

"Because," she replied as she tugged the shirt down. "I'm not just going in the shower. I've got to let Chibs in."

"I can do it."

"I don't want you walking that much." A frown crossed her face as he took a few cautious steps. "Seriously Hap, Tara said that you could..."

"I can do it," he repeated. "Not crippled. Hell, day I can't walk down the hall is the day you need to put two in my head."

"I couldn't do that if I tried," she replied. Happy chuckled. "Just be careful!" She admonished him as she started towards the bathroom. "Stubborn ass man."

"I heard that."

"Good, you were supposed to!" Madeline stuck her tongue out at him and then shut the bathroom door. He laughed when he heard the lock click behind her. They both knew that if he wanted to get into the bathroom, he would.

It took longer than he wanted to reach the front door. "Morning Brother." Chibs grinned. "Your chariot awaits." He held up the keys to the van and the taller man took them. "Got any coffee? I've got the hangover from hell."

"Good party."

"Sort of quiet. Juice brought a girl with him, one of Maddy's friends. Why didn't you tell me her friends were so hot?" Chibs grinned. "Juice is a little ticked off at me today. Seems that I ruined his plans of seduction."

Happy could only shake his head. Chibs certainly loved women and did so every chance he got. And apparently Juice couldn't follow simple instructions, he'd told the man to go easy with Maddy's friend. "Coffee is in the kitchen, got to start the pot. Got time because she's in the shower."

"Think she's got anything to eat?" Chibs asked hopefully. Some food would help settle his stomach and possibly saving him from dying as a result of the hangover.

"Yeah, help yourself." Happy watched his friend go. "Appreciate you bringing the van."

"Tell your ma that I said hello. Got to make my way up there one day soon, she promised me tamales the last time I talked to her."

"I will. She'd like that." Most of the members had met his mother on one occasion or another. Chibs was one of her favorites along with Kozik, Jax and oddly enough Tig. "Gonna stay there tonight, be back in the morning if anyone needs me. Told Jax already."

Chibs moved into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Jesus, how are you not a fat bastard already. Look at all the shit she has in here." He let out a delighted laugh and pulled out a container with shepard's pie in it.

"For breakfast?" Happy questioned as he leaned against the counter and flipped the coffee pot on.

"Delicious for breakfast, delicious any damn time of the day. And I do believe I'll skip the coffee and go for tea. She got tea bags?"

"Got tea leaves," Madeline spoke from the door. "The steeper is in my favorite tea cup, help yourself." She was wearing her long robe with her hair wrapped in a towel. "Just need a Red Bull and then I'll be done in ten minutes." She reached around him to grab the can. "There's two lasagna's in the freezer for you to take to the club house."

"Woman, I could marry you. It's Darren's night to cook." He shuddered and popped the shepard's pie into the microwave. "What about that chocolate cake?"

"Please take it, my hips thank you." She popped the can open and took a sip. She extended it to Happy and he made a face. "It's great. No sugar, instant rush." To prove her point she drank more.

"Ain't stopping every ten minutes for you to piss," he said.

"We'll stop when I have to pee because I'm driving." Madeline grinned. "It'll be too much pressure on your leg. You need to rest and heal."

"I do not ride bitch." He pulled the keys from his pocket to prove his point. "Get a move on Girl, told Ma we'll take her out to breakfast." Happy watched her leave the kitchen and only looked away when Chibs chuckled. "What?"

"You're a lucky bastard, that's what. I remember when Fiona used to look at me that way, made me feel fucking invincible."

"Fiona got your mark?" Happy questioned, not even sure what made him ask.

"Aye, she's got my mark." Chibs looked his brother up and down. "Thinking of inking her?"

Happy shifted his weight, uncomfortable with the conversation. He didn't talk about personal shit like this, ever. Not even with Kozik and he'd known that man longer than anyone except his mother. "Yeah," he said finally. "I'm thinking about it."

"Couldn't make a better choice." Chibs grinned and slapped Happy on the arm several times. "Got to tell ya, you're making Opie a very happy man."

"The fuck?"

"He's going to win the pool Brother." The Scot laughed loudly. "Knew that it was just a matter of time."

Eve looked happy to see them, that was the best that Maddy could say about the woman's apperance. The circles under her eyes were darker, her skin was paler and there wasn't the smell of home cooking in the air; there was the smell of sickness.

"Ma, what the fuck?" Happy spoke gruffly. "Where's Ana?"

"She's out with her friends. There's no need to fuss Happy, I'm fine." Eve motioned for them to sit down. "I did not expect to see you two so soon, I was so pleased when I got your call last night."

"Shoulda called me when you started feeling bad. You call the doctor?"

"I don't want to bother him." The woman protested.

"It's his job, he's a fucking doctor!"

"Watch your mouth!" Eve snapped suddenly. "I will not tolerate that language in my home and you know it! Now sit down!"

Madeline watched as he sat even though she recognized the anger on his face that Eve was being so cavelier about her health. She moved and sat next to him. He took her hand, it almost seemed normal for them now which was a bit of a surprise to her. "Got to call Ma, you're sick."

"I'm not sick Happy, I'm dying and we both know it." Eve sighed. "And I don't want to spend any more time being poked and prodded. I've had a good run, longer one than I should have thanks to you."

"There's more that they can do."

"No. No more." Eve shook her head.

"But..." Happy stuttered as he tried to come up with something else to say; he knew her expression and that she was serious.

Madeline said nothing because she could only focus on not screaming in pain from the way that Happy was squeezing her hand. There was no way she could even imagine being so close to her parents. Hell, they were in the same town and she hadn't seen them in two months. Even seeing this didn't make her miss them, that told her all she needed to know about what a family should be.

"But nothing Happy, there is nothing else to be done but enjoy the time we have left. You have no idea how much I love you my son, how proud I am of you." Eve smiled at him. "Madeline, would you mind making me some tea?"

"Of course Eve," she squeezed Happy's hand. It was obvious that Eve wanted time alone with her son. She couldn't blame her and didn't mind at all. In fact she was glad to go make tea, pop a few pieces of bread in the toaster to see if she could tempt the frail looking woman into hearing.

"She is a good girl." Eve said once Madeline was gone. "I never thought that you'd bring me home a good girl Happy; now that you have this is easier."

"What are you talking about Ma?"

"I know that you have someone now, someone outside of the club and you'll need that when I'm gone. You are not only what you do for them. You are not cold. You are not incapable of love."

"Ma."

"No Happy, you listen. I know you, know who are are all the way down to your soul and I love you. I needed to know that you'd find someone and be able to live a good life with them." Eve's smile was soft and her eyes full of love for her son. "Do not push her away when something happens to me. I need you to promise me that."

"Alright, alright. I promise." He said after a moment. "I'm not ready to lose you." The words put a jagged tear down this throat like the trail of a knife.

"I know Mijo but we can't fight it anymore besides, I've still got time. I hope that you'll be able to visit more."

"Of course. Maddy's got a meeting at school Monday so I've got to take her back for that but as soon as I get her back safe, I'll be on my way here."

"Important meeting?" Eve questioned.

"Some little fucking punk... sorry," he sighed. "Some punk at school said she threatened him with me so they suspended her. Now she's got to meet the school board, let them rule on it and shit." Happy felt fresh anger surge through her. "Should kick that little shits ass and give him something to complain about."

"That would create more problems than it would fix Happy. You stay with her for the hearing. If things go badly she's welcome back here with you." Eve reached out and he moved to sit on the edge of the couch next to her. "Have you told her you love her yet?"

"I think that she knows."

"Think? Think is not good enough. She needs to know especially since it seems she didn't run the way screaming after you were shot in the leg."

"Wasn't shot, I got stabbed."

"Like that's better?" Eve asked. She'd long ago accepted that her son was different, that he was capable of things that she couldn't even fathom. That hadn't changed her love for him one bit. He was her son, her joy and despite the teasing he'd taken for his name as a child she'd never regretted it. When she'd held him in her arms for the first time, someone had asked how she felt. It had probably been a nurse but her own response ended up on his birth certificate; holding her son in her arms she'd simply been happy.

"Sorry Ma." Happy looked down at the floor.

"Don't apologize Happy, I know that you had your reasons." Eve sat up as much as she could to stroke his back. "I want you to do a favor for me."

"What do you need?" He asked eager to give her whatever she wanted or needed.

"There's a jewelry box in my room, a little wooden one, inside there is a ring." Eve sighed at his expression. "It is not for now, I know you. Going to take a good long time before you're ready for that step. I want you to have it now."

7 7 7 7

"Hey." Madeline sat down on the top back step next to Happy.

"Hey." He continued to stare down at the ground.

"I looked in, Eve is still sleeping." She reached out and ran her hand down his arm. "I'm not going to ask if you want to talk because I know that you don't."

He shifted and draped his arm around her shoulder, pulled her closer to him. "Gonna spend as much time up here as I can." Happy glanced over at her. "Head back tomorrow night, stay Monday and see what happens at the school board meeting."

Madeline sighed. "I really don't want to go."

"It'll be okay." He pressed his lips to her hair. "Come on, let's go to bed."


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize. Everything else is mine.

A/N: Thanks again for all the support for this story. It really means the world to me. You guys are the best. Enough from me, enjoy!

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

Chibs swallowed the last bite of his lasagna and sighed. "Now that Brothers, is the best lasagna I've ever had."

"Don't say that loud enough for Gemma to hear," Tig advised. He leaned in and lowered his voice. "It was fucking good though." He picked up his beer and eyed the crow eaters. "Think any of these bitches could cook like that?"

Kozik bust out laughing as he rose to his feet, empty plate in hand. "I'm pretty sure these bitches could burn water. Doesn't really matter if they can cook as long as they have other talents. And I think I need some dessert." He let out a low whistle as the club house door opened. "Look at her."

"This little bitch." Tig growled the words at the sight of the barely dressed blonde in the doorway. "Told her to stay away. Reel it in Blondie, bitch is still in high school." He left his plate at the table but took his beer with him. "You got a problem hearing?"

"No." Tiffany held up her hands. "I come in peace. Really, I do. It's just..." she looked around the room. "There was this guy following me and I decided to duck in here. I just want him to keep going and forget about me and then I'll leave. I promise."

"What guy?" Darren asked from where he'd been ordered to stand by the door.

"Some guy in a creeper van, started following me when I left my friend Kate's house. She lives on Elmwood." The girl was up to something. Tig knew that. The prospect on the other hand, didn't realize that something was up with her.

"You sit outside on the picnic table. Talk to no one. Darren, you sit with her. In an hour she's off the lot. And don't talk to her." He added. "Fucking kids. You shouldn't leave the house dressed like a hooker and then maybe guys won't follow you down the street."

"That was a little harsh." Darren smiled at the pretty blonde when Tig stalked away. "Come on outside, I'll grab us a couple of beers."

8

Madeline slept but Happy laid awake. His ears were tuned for any possible sound coming from his mother's room. His aunt, who he paid well to watch over the ill woman, had yet to show her face again. She was out with friends again. He wondered how much she'd been out with friends while his mother had been wasting away.

Tomorrow he was having a talk with her, a talk that was going to end with her out on her ass and he wouldn't feel the least bit guilty. Eve was his concern, the woman who'd raised him and given him everything.

Next to him Madeline shifted, made a whimpering noise and buried her face against his chest. It was rare but every once in a while when she felt stressed she'd have nightmares. She said they were always the same, started way back when she was a kid, a man without the face of a man chasing her. She described him as having wolf like features, terrifying red eyes and that no matter how fast or far she ran he was always just one step behind her.

"Wake up Girl." Gently he stroked her hair back from her face. "Just dreaming." This time his hands were a little more forceful and when he tugged her hair lightly her eyes finally opened. "The dream again?"

She nodded, eyes half lidded with sleep. "Just a little different this time, this time you were there." A smile crossed her eyelids. "And you were behind him, chasing him. There was a knife. You were going to kill him but then..."

"I'm right here." He reminded her. "And we're in Bakersfield, at Ma's house. We're safe. You're always safe with me." They'd laid like this before and he knew that when he talked in a lone tone, held her and made her feel safe that she'd relax.

"I love you." Madeline looked up at him as she said the words; pleased when he smiled in return. "No matter what happens Monday at that meeting, I'm not leaving Charming. I'm not leaving you, not ever."

"I know." He pressed his lips to her hair again. "You know, you're the first woman who has ever slept in this room. We moved here when I was a teenager, nicest place that we ever had before and Ma worked hard to make it even better."

"It's great here." She looked around the room. "And I feel very special that you brought me here. That you trust me to know Eve."

"Course I trust you." His voice came out gruff. "You're with me Mad."

"Just try and get rid of me." She snuggled back into his side. "I set my alarm, want to get up and make Eve breakfast. Well breakfast for all of us."

"Sounds good." He stroked his hand over her back. "Go on back to sleep."

"Love you." She mumbled and then her face was buried in his chest again. He didn't dare move as she got comfortable and moments later she was deep asleep once more. Sleep eluded him but there was something to be said about laying in his childhood bed watching his woman sleep.

8

Tiffany stretched her long legs against the rough sheets but the lack of comfort didn't bother her. No, there was a nice heat source right next to her. Darren had been kind and sweet the night before. When the hour Tig had given her was up he'd helped her sneak back inside to the room that was his. It was small, cramped and smelled like a variety of body fluids. She didn't care about any of that.

See, this was step one. Get in good with one of the Son's. Step two was waiting for Ms. Walker to have her meeting with the school board, the dinosaurs on the board would have their panties in a twist that one of their teachers was shaking up with a tattooed biker with a heavy criminal record. Of course, she'd had to be discreet in letting that information sneak out.

It hadn't taken much at all, Justin Ray always had a crush on her. It had just taken a few minutes in the back of the darkened boys locker room to convince him to go to the principal and say that Ms. Walker had threatened him. They'd swallowed it; hook, line and sinker.

Next to her Darren shifted and she shut her eyes to look like she was sleeping.

"I pay you good money to take care of her!" Happy's voice was a growl, a tone that Madeline recognized and it made her fear for his Aunt. The woman looked to be just a few years older than him with a bored expression on her face.

"And I do take care of her, more than you do. More than you could ever!" Ana popped to her feet as she spat the words. "I cook for her, clean for her, wash and dress her. I am her fucking maid. I am no ones maid. If I want to live my life there's nothing that you can do about it. Do not try to glare at me, I am not scared of you."

"You should be," he advised. "Get your shit and get out."

"This is Eve's house, not yours. I will leave if she tells me too and we both know that she will not. I am her sister, her blood. All that you really care about is that club of yours."

"You're going to want to shut up and start packing." The cool, almost distant tone that he used made Madeline rise to her feet.

"Or what? You're going to sick your little bitch on me? I'm not scared of either of you."

"Call her a bitch again." Happy surged forward. Madeline wedged herself between the two of them.

"You heard him, he said get out." Madeline's voice was ice. "And for saying that you've been taking care of Eve, that's a lie." She'd been filling the woman's pill containers that morning and found that there were bottles and bottles of pills which had been filled by the pharmacy but never opened; meaning that Eve hadn't been getting the drugs that she needed in order to survive.

"I will not repeat myself; I will leave when my sister tells me too. Not because her no good thug son and his flavor of the week tell me too. I take good care of her and just ask for a little time for me."

"Good care of her?" Madeline snorted with laughter that had nothing to do with humor. "That's why I found untouched bottles of pills in a basket upstairs? Pills that Eve should have been taking." Before she'd even finished the last word she felt herself being shoved to the side. "Hap!" She tried to grab him but he had his aunt by the shoulders.

The woman hit the wall with a thump. "Damn you, I will call the police."

"You'll shut your mouth or I'll snap your fucking neck! Stashing Ma's meds? Let me guess, except for the pain killers because I bet that you've been making money on those. Right? RIGHT?" Anger had him firmly in its grip, rage coursed through every part of him. He was aware of Madeline behind him but he didn't release his grip.

"Happy! Please." Madeline knew that he was going to hurt the woman and she couldn't blame him but she was sure his aunt would follow through on her threat and call the police.

There was no telling what would have happened because he didn't respond to her voice or her touch. "Happy." Eve Lowman spoke from the top stair, her hand wrapped around the railing in a tight grip.

"Help me Eve. Help me," Ana cried out. "He's crazy. I told you that he's crazy."

"My son is not crazy." Eve took several steps down the stairs as Happy released his Aunt. She stumbled away from the wall, tears on her cheeks. "And I've heard every word that's been said so don't try and talk your way out of this."

Still the woman tried, stammered and stuttered for several minutes before falling silent. "I'm sorry." She said finally.

"Sure fucking are." Happy grumbled and looked away from her. He looked over at Madeline who hadn't said much of anything since she'd tried unsuccessfully to pull him off of his aunt. He'd fucked up, scared her.

"Happy and Madeline, please give me a moment alone with my sister." Eve requested and waved away the concerned look on her son's face. "Please."

"Five minutes and then this bitch is out." Happy rose and felt Madeline do the same. Her hand slipped into his and he let her lead him outside. "I wanted to fucking kill her," and he still did. Red raw anger was still flowing through him.

"Me too. I was so about to punch her when you moved me out of the way." She watched as he sat down on Eve's favorite chair. When he tugged her towards him she settled down on his lap. "I hate that we've got to leave her and go back tomorrow, even if it's for just a day."

"Yeah, I know." He ran his hand over her jean clad thigh. "I'll see if the neighbor can keep an eye on her. Her and Ma have been friends a while."

"What if she came with us?"

"Only two seats in the van." Happy pointed out.

"You can drive, I'll sit in the back." She offered.

Happy thought about the things that they'd transported in that van. The guns weren't what concerned him. He remembered all too clearly the bodies that they had put into the back to take for disposal. "No."

"Then I think that you should stay." Madeline leaned her head against his. "I can handle the meeting on my own."

"Mad, you shouldn't have to do that. We'll make it work, find someone to stay with her tomorrow."

"There's something else I thought of but I don't know how you're going to feel about it." Madeline traced her fingers over the ink on his arm.

"What's that?"

"Why don't we bring her back to Charming with us? There's the guest room at my house and it would be easier to make sure she's doing okay." She didn't say it but it would also be quicker for them to know if something happened to her. "We could figure something out for home care during the day while I'm at work."

Happy stared at her so long that she thought she'd done something wrong, said something wrong. Madeline bit down on her lower lip and was debating an apology when his hand moved up to cup the back of her head. He pulled her into a kiss that said everything he could never say to her.

"You would do that?" His emotion was obvious in his voice. "You'd take my mother into your home?"

"Our home," she corrected. "If you think it's a good idea, yes. I want your mother in our home."

Silence fell between them. Happy cleared his throat, uncomfortable with the level of emotion he was feeling. "I'll talk to Ma. Can't have her riding around in that bumpy van if she says yes."

"I'll call Lia, ask her to drive up. She can drive Eve back and we can fit some stuff into the van."

"I'll have to talk to her." And to Jax because his mother and aunts house had long been a spot they used to stash weapons from the Irish before arranging for the transport. "Might be some complications with the club."

"Why?" She frowned as she looked down at him.

"Come on, I'll show you." He patted her leg and she got to her feet.

Madeline wasn't sure what she should expect as he led her around the side of the house to the truck that seemed to always be parked there. Her curious nature got the best of her but she managed to keep her questions to herself though there were many of them.

Happy pulled open the back of the truck revealing stacks of wooden crates all marked the same way, heavy automotive parts. He hopped up onto the truck and held out his hand to her. She took it and allowed him to pull her up. He looked around the back yard before moving to one of the crates and picking up a crow bar.

"Can't tell anyone about this Mad," he said. His onyx eyes met hers. "Ever."

"I promise." She told him as he used the crow bar to pop open one of the boxes. Honestly, she'd expected to see guns in there. But not the type of guns she saw, she was far from an expert but these weren't your run of the mill handguns. Cautiously she stepped forward and ran her hand over the long barreled gun. "If these are here, why aren't there any Sons here? What if someone comes to take them?"

"Two guys from Tacoma have been down. They take a break when they know I'm coming. Tomorrow morning they'll move the truck and take it back up to Tacoma," he explained. "Next shipment the Charming guys will cover it."

"When is that?"

"End of the week probably." Happy ran a hand over his head before putting the cover back on the crate. "Let's get back in, check on Ma and the bitch."

Madeline followed him inside, her mind going a thousand miles a minute. With Happy there was a lot of things that were left unspoken and then she had to figure out what was on his mind. Right now it could only be that he wanted Eve to come to Charming but did not think that the club was going to agree because they needed her home as a stash spot.

"Where is she?" Happy growled, obviously referring to his aunt.

Eve was on the couch and she looked exhausted. "Ana is packing her things. She'll be moving out," she told them.

"Eve, maybe we should take you back up to bed." Madeline suggested.

"Not just yet Darling Girl." The woman smiled kindly at her. "The three of us need to have a conversation now."

"You should rest Ma." Happy pointed out with one eye on the stairs. He was going to take real pleasure in throwing Ana out.

"There's time for that later. Right now, we need to talk about the future." Eve sat up with obvious effort. "I don't want to die in some home somewhere."

"Not putting you in a home," Happy replied. "Going to take you home with us."

"With you?" Eve looked between the two of them. "What about the truck? The shipments?" She might have been older and ill but she'd never been stupid. Though her son and everyone else had told her that they were storing surplus auto parts, she knew it was something more and something less than legal.

"It won't be a problem." Happy told her. "We'll figure it out."

"I think you'll like your room at our house." Madeline sat down next to Eve. "We'll decorate it as you'd like. It's got plain white walls right now but there's a Queen sized bed, plenty of space for anything that you'll need."

Happy watched the two women sit close together, his mother took Madeline's hands in her own and they began planning for Charming.

"Fuck." He dreaded the phone call to Jax though if there was anyone who could understand the need to have his mother close, it was his President. He brought the phone to his ear. "We need to talk."

"Something happen in Bakersfield?"

"You could say that," Happy replied grimly and launched into the story. When he was done he waited for Jax's judgment.

"I'll send some of the guys up tomorrow with Mom's truck. Eve will be more comfortable in that. As far as the house goes, don't put it on the market or anything. Talked to Lee in Tacoma a few days ago, think that he's got someone who can rent it from you. Someone who's a friend of the club. We can keep up with the shipments as normal."

Relief flowed through Happy. "Good. Have them call me when they're on the way up. And Jax, thank you." It was as emotional as he'd possibly ever been with his President but if anyone could understand the importance of family it was Jax.

He went back inside to tell his mother and Madeline the news but never got around to it as he found his mother asleep on the couch with his girl next to her. "Hey."

"Hey. We should try and get her in bed, she's exhausted." Madeline smiled sweetly. "If you can manage her I'll get her medicine and something for her to eat with it ready."

"Yeah, I've got her," he replied. When Madeline got to her feet he grabbed her arm. "Mad?"

"Yeah?" She tilted her head back to look up at him. "What Hap?"

He wanted to tell her how he felt but the words wouldn't come. It wasn't because he didn't feel them, he certainly did. It was because he'd never told a woman he'd loved her before except for his mother. So instead of saying anything, he hoped that his actions would show her what he felt.

The kiss was slow, deep and made her hands curl into the soft leather of his cut. When she pushed her body against him a low growl escaped his lips.

On the couch Eve cleared her throat. "Perhaps the two of you would like to go upstairs."

Madeline jumped at the sound of her voice. "Eve, we were just..."

"I've got eyes." The woman replied with a smirk. "Let me get out of your hair."

"You're not in our hair Ma. Gonna get you something to eat so you can take your pills."

"Would you go down the street and get me pizza?"

"Of course. I'll be back in a few minutes."

"I can go." Madeline offered as she saw the slight hitch in Happy's step. It was so easy to forget that the tough man had been injured. "Just point me in the right direction."

"No." He shook his head. "You stay with Ma. I'll be right back."

"If you're sure, I'm happy to keep Eve company."

"You should start calling me Ma," the woman told her as she fixed the blanket across her legs. "Come and sit down, let's talk more about my new room."

Suddenly it had hit Happy; his mother was dying. It was going to happen soon despite his best efforts. He'd given all that he could to her, supported her financially and mentally. And soon she was going to be gone. He'd never even thought of bringing her to Charming before; on some level he'd known that doing so would be admitting that there was nothing else that he could do.

"Get the spicy chorizo pizza and some onion rings." Eve flashed a wide smile at him. For a minute she didn't look sick or frail, she was simply beautiful. "Do you want anything Maddy?"

"Another order of onion rings because I am not sharing." Madeline pulled her hair up with the band she'd had around her wrists. "And diet soda."

"You don't need diet." Eve admonished Madeline. "You're just perfect and I'm not the only person who thinks so." She looked over at her son and smiled even wider. "Isn't that right Happy?"

"Damn straight." Happy moved forward and leaned down to kiss his mother's cheek. Madeline's cheeks were still red when he brushed his lips against hers. "Don't believe half of the shit she tells you about me." He cautioned with a smile.

Dinner had been filling and fun; it was great to see Happy and Eve as a family. It made Madeline realize once more all that she'd missed out on. They were warm and loving without being sickeningly sweet about it. The affection that they felt for one another was genuine, never forced. When she had a family, she wanted it to be like this. That was when it hit her; she wanted a family. More specifically she wanted a family with the man that she loved.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: As always, I own nothing that you recognize.

Thanks as always for all the reviews, favorites and follows. They motivate me more than you could know. Enjoy this chapter!

**CHAPTER NINE**

"Get your mother settled Hap. I can do this." Madeline stretched up on her toes and brushed her lips against his. Her house, no their house, was a hive of activity as Chibs ordered around the prospects Darren and Saturn. "It'll be fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah." She kissed him again. "Love you."

Happy stroked his fingers over the side of her face. His eyes darkened and he saw her frown. "Relax Girl. Go kick their asses."

"You got something on your mind Hap?"

"I'll tell you later. Don't worry." He kissed her again softly. "Be careful."

"You too."

Happy watched her go and slid his hand into the pocket of his cut. His fingers brushed over the small box he'd placed the ring his mother had given him into. He didn't know if he was ready to give it to Madeline but he wasn't ready to loose her and he knew that it would make his mother extremely happy.

"Hey Brother." Chibs came over and smacked him on the shoulder. "Madeline got anything to eat inside, I'm starving. Worked up a real appetite ordering those two around." He grinned at the prospects. "Don't you scratch that, it's old and expensive."

"Ma brought that shit at a yard sale." Happy watched as the prospects carefully carried the twenty dollar table towards the house.

"They don't know that." Chibs laughed long and loud. "Let's eat and check on Eve."

99999999

It didn't matter what she said or what the union representative said; the school board swayed by Principal Snyder had it out for her from the start. The word of the still unnamed student was taken more seriously than her word or her record.

"Ms. Walker, perhaps it is time that you consider looking for a position that suits you better." The head of the school board was a dark haired woman who was certainly looking down her nose at Madeline. "Teaching can be a trying profession and if your default response is to threaten an unruly student, well we can not accept that. In consideration to your commendable record we will not be pursuing criminal charges for terroristic threats. The student has assured us that he will not pursue other charges."

"Perhaps my client should consider charges." A female voice spoke from the back of the room. "Della Edmonds." She told the board. "Let's go Madeline. We're done here, I've heard enough."

"You retained counsel?" Principal Snyder spoke up. "And you say that you're not guilty?!" The short man popped up from his chair.

"She isn't guilty of anything except being the victim of a witch hunt." The lawyer informed him. "Now, you will reveal the student who is making these unfounded charges or I will personally file a lawsuit for unfounded harassment again the school board and everyone else present in this room. I'll give you twenty four hours so you can give it some thought. Shall we Madeline?"

"I didn't hire a lawyer." Madeline whispered as they walked out of the room.

"The firm that I work for is on a retainer with friends of yours. We received a call from Opie Winston late last night explaining your situation. Honestly I offered to take the case the minute I heard the specifics. This is a witch hunt."

"I didn't do what they say."

"I never figured that you did. You don't become an Old Lady by being stupid or sloppy. Here's my card. I've already got all of your information. If anyone from the school board or the school contacts you, I want you to call me. Otherwise I'll be in touch when they give up the name of the student."

"And if they don't?" Madeline questioned. The sick feeling in her stomach was still there but maybe a little less. Della Edmond just embodied confidence in her expensive suit and sky high heels.

"They will," the woman told her. "On the off chance that they don't; we file a law suit against the Charming Board of Education."

9999999

"You comfortable Ma?"

"Very much so, this house is very nice. It is a home." Eve nodded with approval. "You are worried about her."

"She should have been back by now." In fact he was just about ready to ask people to go and look for her. Juice had spoken to Lia, the meeting was over because the principal and other members of the disciplinary board were all back in school.

"Perhaps she needed a little time to digest whatever happened."

That was possible but he didn't like thinking of her out there alone. Charming was safe again or at least it seemed safe. Nothing had happened since they'd hit the safe house but that didn't mean that he was going to let his guard down. Especially not when he could still see the pictures of Madeline on that damned board. "I'm going to go look for her. I'll have Darren come and sit with you."

"I don't need a babysitter Happy, I will be fine on my own. Besides, that poor boy is probably still cleaning Tig's boots with his toothbrush."

"I could call Tig," he offered because he knew that his mother really liked the man.

"Tell him to bring cards with him. I don't know where mine are."

9999

It had been Madeline's intention to go home after she got done with the meeting but she'd been too keyed up so she stopped for a coffee. It probably wasn't the best idea to indulge in caffine but she needed to think.

The meeting had been going terribly until Della Edmond walked in; honestly Madeline had expected the next thing out of the school board president's mouth was that she was fired. Now she'd gotten a bit of a reprieve. It could still happen but it was less likely to happen with a shark of a lawyer in her corner.

"Madeline?" She glanced over as her name was called and bit back a sigh as she saw her mother.

"Hello Mom."

"Shouldn't you be at work?"

"I'm off today." There was no reason that she'd ever tell the woman the truth. It wasn't worth the lecture that would follow.

She should have known that avoiding a lecture would be too much to ask as her mother's facial expression pinched as if she smelled something unpleasant. "I hope that you've come to your senses and ended your fling with that awful man."

"He is not an awful man; it is not a fling." Madeline wasn't having this conversation. "It's been nearly three months since we've seen one another Mom; that's all that you have to say?"

"I don't know what I did to get such an ungrateful daughter. Your father and I sacrificed our whole lives so you could have the best of everything and you end up some biker's whore." Her mother's voice carried but the woman didn't care even as heads turned to stare at them.

Madeline knew that there was no point in asking her mother to lower her voice. "I'm not his whore."

"Got no ring on your finger and I hear that you're living with him. It's disgusting."

"No, you're disgusting." Madeline rose from the table. "You've never been a parent to me, not a real parent. You and Dad were more concerned about fighting and fucking to make up with one another than you ever were about me so don't you dare stand there and point fingers. I'm happy now Mom, happier than I've ever been."

"You've lost your mind. I should call Justin and tell him to come here and talk some sense into you."

"Justin cheated on me Mom. He cheated on me."

"I'm sure that you drove him to it."

"Go to hell." Madeline snarled the words and got to her feet. "And stay the fuck away from me because as far as I'm concerned, I don't have parents anymore. It's better for us all that way."

"Don't you go to walk away from me!"

"What are you going to do about it?" A familiar female voice questioned. Madeline swore to herself when she turned to see Gemma Teller Morrow standing there. "Hello Shelia."

"Gemma." The woman replied stiffly. "This is between my daughter and I."

"Way I just heard it, you don't have a daughter anymore." A smile played over Gemma's lips. "Can't say I'm surprised she would feel that way; maybe a little surprised it's taken her so long."

"I don't think that you've got any room to talk about motherhood Gemma, not with your son the head of that gang."

"It's a motorcycle club Mother." Madeline informed her coldly.

"Don't engage her Madeline, she just wants to get a rise out of someone. Come on, I was just picking up some cookies to take to Eve." Gemma took her by the arm and steered her to the door. "Now start breathing. Do not give that toxic bitch the satisfaction of seeing that she got to you. No one can get to you like a mother; trust me I know all about that."

99999

Happy wasn't sure if he should be pissed or relieved when Madeline pulled into the driveway with Gemma's SUV right behind her. Tig was in the guest room with Eve and he had just been pulling on his gloves to leave when he heard her car.

"Hap? Eve?" Madeline called out as she came inside. She jumped when he stepped out of the kitchen. "Scared me."

"Where have you been?"

"I stopped for coffee after the meeting." She explained. "Ran into Gemma."

"I'll give the two of you a minute. I want to say hi to Eve." Gemma's heels clicked down the hall and Happy waited until he heard the door shut until he turned to face Madeline.

"You can't just take off like that Mad. Fuck." He ran a hand over his freshly shaved head.

"I didn't take off, I stopped for coffee. I didn't think that it would be a big deal." She looked up at him. "I just needed to clear my head before I came back. Things were going pretty bad until that lawyer Opie called came in."

"Rosen?" Happy frowned.

"One of Rosen's associates I guess, Della Edmond? She ended the meeting and told them that they need to release the name of whoever made the accusations or she's going to sue. I can't believe that Opie called her, I mean... she can't be cheap if she's walking around in two thousand dollar shoes."

"I can believe it." Happy wasn't surprised that Opie would make the call, it was the type of man that he was. That said, he was a little pissed that he'd done so without consulting him first. Not that he'd have said no but when decisions were being made about his Old Lady, he was going to have a fucking say in it. "You call the next time, let me know that you're safe."

"You were worried?"

"Of course I was." He reached out for her. "Always worry about you."

Madeline's smile widened. It was so rare to catch him in a moment like this where he'd admit things about the way that he felt. "I'm sorry that you were worried, next time I'll call and let you know."

"Alright." Happy leaned in and kissed her lightly. "Go on and grab a sweater, we're going for a ride."

"What about Eve?"

"Gemma and Tig can look after her. Actually, we should probably be more concerned about Tig; last I checked he was already down twenty five dollars in gin rummy against Ma."

"I'll grab my sweater." Madeline stood up on her toes so that she could brush her lips against his. "Can we go fast?"

"Yeah, we can go fast." Happy cleared his throat. "Need to talk to you about something."

"Everything okay?" Nerves sprang to life once more inside of Madeline's stomach. "Hap?"

"Everything is fine. Go and get your sweater."

Ten minutes later they were on his bike. Madeline's body was pressed close to his, her thighs tight against him. It made him hard just to feel her like that around him and he forced more concentration on the road. He took the turns on the winding road just a little too fast. Several times he heard her gasp but her grip around his waist never wavered.

They rode through most of Charming, out onto the freeway and then back into Charming again. It wasn't the first time that they'd just get on the bike and ride so Madeline wasn't too concerned about their destination. When the bike finally came to a stop she was surprised that they were on a random street in town except once she looked around she realized that it wasn't too random of a street. Instead it was the street where they'd first met; she could practically pick out the exact spot that his bike had gone down and where she'd come out of the clearing.

Happy parked the bike at the curb and got off of the bike. "What are we doing here?" Madeline asked as he offered his hand to help her off of the bike.

"You getting off the bike or what?" He grinned when she took his hand. "Come on." Happy held his hand in hers and crossed the street.

"Hap? What are we doing here? What's going on?"

"Need to talk to you." He walked into the clearing, looked around. There were countless other spots like this in Charming, though they were becoming fewer as development started to bloom.

"What's wrong?" Madeline demanded. "Did you find out something about Eve?"

"It's not about Ma." He stopped walking and shoved his hands into his pockets. "It's about us."

Panic flared inside of Madeline. "What about us?" Her voice rose shrilly. What was he going to say? Was this the end? "Did I do something?"

"Yeah Girl, you did something." Happy said seriously. "Did something to me."

"What?" She frowned and took several steps back from him. Madeline crossed her arms over her chest in a defensive motion. "What did I do to you?"

"What are you standing all the way over there for?"

"What did I do to you?" Madeline heard her voice crack as she searched her mind for something that she'd done to him. Something that would be bad enough to have them where they were with that look on his face.

"What do you think?" He questioned as he closed the distance between them.

"I... I don't know Happy." She felt tears sting her eyes but blinked them back. No matter what happened right now she would not break down and cry. No, she'd save the crying for later in private but what was private when he and his mother were living in her house. "If... if you changed your mind about me or us please just say it. Don't make me guess."

Happy watched her but she didn't see him because she was only looking at the ground beneath their feet. He reached out and tilted her chin up. "You think I brought you out here to end shit with you?"

Madeline met his eyes and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know what to think," she admitted. "I don't know what I did to you."

"You wanna know?" He moved his thumbs to brush away the tears that had seeped from her eyes. "Do you?"

"Yes."

"Never wanted a girl, sure as fuck didn't want an Old Lady." He returned his hand to her chin so that she wouldn't look away. "When I met you, I couldn't get you out of my head and trust me I tried."

"What are you saying Hap?"

"Can I finish Woman? Shit. This isn't easy for me to say." Happy stepped back from her and ran his hand over his head. "I never wanted any of that shit but then I wanted you; never thought that we'd end up here. We're living together with my mother." He shook his head. "Ain't no denying it now."

"Denying what?"

"That I love you." The words were simple but they stole Madeline's breath. Her hand went to her chest and she knew that her eyes were bulged out and her mouth hanging open. "That you're my Old Lady even without the ink."

Madeline's head was spinning and she couldn't help the laughter that finally escaped her lips. It was hysterical which was fitting because that's exactly what she was. Happy caught her as she launched herself at him and he held her tight against his chest.

Happy continued to hold her even as the laughter turned into tears. His hands stroked her back and he figured that this was her way of processing what he'd just told her. The only thing was, he wasn't done yet. "Mad?"

"Yeah?" She sniffled and tilted her head back.

"I wasn't finished."

"There's more?"

"Yeah." He pressed his lips to her forehead. "Got something I want you to have."

"You got a tat gun hidden in your pocket?" Madeline questioned as he stepped back and reached into his cut. When she saw him take out the small black box that could only mean one thing she thought that she was hallucinating. "Hap!" Her hand came up to cover her mouth.

"What?" He stopped, box still in his hand. "You don't want to see what's inside?"

"Of course I do," she smiled and closed the distance between them. "But there's something that I want to say first."

Something flashed over his face, she couldn't be sure what. "Say what you want," he told her as his hand closed around the box. In that instant she knew what she was seeing on his face; he was shutting down. He'd opened himself up and now thought that she was going to reject him so he'd shut down. "I love you Happy; I love you more than I ever thought was possible. I'm with you, always going to be with you." Madeline reached out to stroke her hand over the side of his face. "I think I know what's in that box and I need you to know that I don't expect it. I don't need it. All I need is you."

"It's a key chain, couldn't find a box to fit it."

"Key chain?" Madeline repeated. "Oh shit, really?" Disappointment flashed across her face but she hid it well. "I thought... well it's obvious what I thought."

"Check it out. It's pretty cool." He pressed the box in her hand.

"A key chain in a ring box? Who told you that was a good idea?" Madeline questioned. "Let me guess, Kozik?" Her eyes narrowed into a glare and Happy bit back a laugh. She tried to be menacing, maybe he just couldn't see it. "It's not funny, that was really mean. It was almost as mean as when you took me to Ma's house the first time and..." whatever she was going to say next was lost as she flipped open the top of the box. It was no key chain nestled in the black velvet inside. It was a ring.

"Told you, pretty cool." Happy grinned down at her. "Say something Mad, you're freaking me the fuck out here."

"You want to get married?" She choked out the words as she continued to stare down at the ring. It was perfect, white gold with a diamond surrounded by smaller sized diamonds.

"Gave you a ring, didn't I?" He reached out and plucked it from the box. "You got anything else to say?"

"Hmmm." Madeline teased playfully as he grabbed her hand. "I guess so, I've got nothing better to do with the rest of my life."

"Smart ass bitch." Happy growled the words and slid the ring onto her finger.

"Your bitch," she pointed out.

"Got to work on your ink next." Happy reached out and ran his hand down her arm. "I'm thinking my name right across the middle of your forehead." He brought a finger up to tap the spot.

"Oh yeah? That sounds sexy as hell." She burst out laughing as his fingers skimmed her sides. "We really doing this?"

"Yeah Mad, we really are."

"No second thoughts?"

"You trying to make me change my mind?" He demanded in a gruff tone that she knew wasn't actually from anger but from him playing around, teasing her.

"Hell no." Madeline looked down at the ring on her finger. "I'd hurt you if you did." The more thought she gave to being Mrs. Happy Lowman, the faster her heart raced.

"You'd hurt me?" Happy let out a loud laugh. "Girl, I'd probably pay money to see that."

"Try and take this back," she wiggled her hand in front of his face, "and you'll be out more than money."

"I wouldn't do that." He turned suddenly serious. "I'm taking this serious Mad, I really am."

"I know you are." And because she knew that he wasn't entirely comfortable with it she stretched up to kiss him. "I think that a long engagement is in order."

"Actually, I was thinking we just go and do it." Happy spoke bluntly, he'd given it thought. If they were going to take this step and now they were because she'd said yes; what was the point in waiting? "I'd really like Ma to be there. We don't know how much time she's got."

"Then we'll do it sooner rather than later." Either way was really fine with her but she'd thought that he might like the time a long engagement would give. "I don't want my family there."

"You sure?"

"Ran into my mother today. Gemma had to rescue me so that gives you an idea of how bad it was. We both know she doesn't like me."

"Just takes her some time to warm up to people, especially women." Happy assured her as he leaned in to kiss her forehead. "Wanna head back? We can tell Ma, I can get my kit set up."

"Kit?"

"The tattoo kit." He grinned. "Hope your forehead is ready."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I made a HUGE boo boo and posted chapter 11 as chapter 10. Blame it on the Nyquil I've been taking for the cold that will not go away. So I'm reposting in the proper order. HUGE apologies to everyone. I can't believe that I did that.

CHAPTER TEN

Della Edmond was a woman who got what she wanted. It had started way back when she was three and determined to be a princess. Her parents had caved and she'd walked around wearing a tiara for three years until she decided that she'd rather be Batman. That determination had carried her through school, graduating two years ahead of the kids that she'd gone to kindergarten with and on to college and law school.

Now she had an office in a prestigious firm, it didn't matter that she was still a junior partner because that wouldn't last long. She had her eyes on a huge corner office and her name on the door. It would happen in good time.

Madeline Walker's case was going to be her first with the firm. She'd lied to the woman; she didn't give a shit if the Charming Board of Education was on a witch hunt. She cared that the woman was connected to one of the firms biggest and most elusive clients; the Sons of Anarchy.

"Ms. Edmond; you have a Gwen Parker from the Charming School Board on the line." The receptionist spoke through the intercom.

"Let her hold for a few minutes and then transfer her through." Della instructed as she began to rearrange the items on her desk. When the call came through she answered it in a terse tone. "Hello Ms. Parker. I really hope that you're calling with the information that I requested." She listened for a moment and scribbled down a name, Justin Ray. "Thank you Ms. Parker. Now, if you'll excuse me I have work to do."

10 10 10

"Three weeks is not a lot of time to plan a wedding." Eve pointed out with a small frown as she looked at her new daughter.

"Three weeks is plenty of time." The gleam in Gemma's eye sent a little stake of fear directly into Madeline's heart. "I already called a friend on the reservation, they'll let us have the space where Opie and Lyla got hitched."

Madeline had expected Gemma and Tig to be gone by the time that they returned from the ride but instead she'd found her house full of people with Eve holding court over all of them. It had only taken about sixty seconds for the woman to spot the ring on her finger and then everyone in the house knew. It didn't take long before the guys who weren't there started to show up and now it was the women in the living room and the guys in the backyard.

"I saw pictures from the ceremony, it was a beautiful spot." Her head began to pound as she wondered just how much of a say she was going to have in her own wedding as Gemma and Eve started talking again. When they began discussing garters Madeline realized that she was going to be lucky if she was allowed to walk down the aisle under her own steam but she didn't really care too much about the details. What she did care about was Eve being able to enjoy the wedding.

Still, when her phone rang it was a blessing to be taken away from the debate over the color scheme. "Excuse me, it's the lawyer. I've got to take this." Once she was down the hall from them she answered the call. "Madeline Walker."

"Della Edmond here Madeline. I got the call that we were waiting for. Do you know a student named Justin Ray?"

"Justin?" Madeline almost dropped the phone as she sat down on the hall floor. "He's one of my best students, we've never had a problem! I don't understand why he of all people would lie."

"We will get to the bottom of it." The woman assured her. "I'm going to set up a meeting with him and his parents."

"He's eighteen," Madeline told the woman.

"That's even better. Now, just lay low until I set the meeting." The lawyer told her. "I'll be in contact with you shortly."

"I'll do that. I've actually got some stuff going on here."

"What sort of stuff?"

"Wedding planning actually." Sure she barely knew the woman but the more and more she thought about the ring on her finger, the more that she wanted to just tell the world.

"Wedding planning?" Della's voice rose several octaves. "Your wedding?"

"Yes."

"To your Son boyfriend?"

"Be kind of weird if it wasn't."

"Madeline, you do realize that part of the problem the school board has with you is that you're affiliated with the Sons, right?"

"My personal life isn't their business." Madeline said with an edge to her voice.

"The contract that you signed with them has a morals clause."

"And getting married violates that?" Madeline demanded.

"They're going to see becoming a biker Old Lady as a violation of it. You are involved with Happy Lowman, correct?"

"Correct," Madeline could hear the sound of papers rustling through the phone.

"He has an extensive criminal record." Della said with obvious judgment in her voice. "Are you aware of that?"

"Yes. I am." She kept her voice firm and rose to her feet. "And I'm marrying him and I don't give a flying fuck what anyone says." The words came out a low dangerous hiss. "And as my lawyer it's your job to make sure that I get my job back or a fat settlement from the school board so I suggest you do your job."

Madeline ended the call with such force that she feared she'd actually broken the screen. She drew in a deep breath. "You alright?" She glanced over to see Tig standing there. "I was grabbing Eve something to eat, she's going to use all of her strength with how excited she is. Got to tell you Doll, never thought I'd see the day when Hap committed to a white picket fence life."

"I don't want a white picket fence life anymore than he does," she snapped and immediately regretted it. "Sorry Tig."

"Nah, don't fuck it up by apologizing." He told her with a chuckle. "Like to see you with a little fire. Gonna need it with your Old Man." Tig smiled widely. "He decide on the ink yet?"

"Across my forehead apparently," she responded with a smile. Truthfully he hadn't said much except that he had the design in his mind. She'd asked to see and he'd just shook his head. It would be a surprise. "You really sitting in on the wedding planning with Gemma and Eve?"

"Fuck no, I'm just dropping off the food and running before I get assigned a task. Then I'm going to head back outside and finish drinking."

"Is that what you guys are doing out there? And I wasn't invited?"

"Your house, didn't figure you needed an invitation." He shrugged his shoulders and looked down at the tray in his hands. "See you down there?"

"Yeah, I need a drink."

Madeline was glad that she'd chosen to get a table with six chairs for the patio. All of them were occupied by members of the club. "There she is!" Chibs called out.

"Hey guys, there any beer left?"

"I got it." Darren jumped up from his chair. "You can sit there if you want Maddy."

"She doesn't need permission to sit in one of her own chairs." Opie rolled his eye at the prospect. "Congratulations again Maddy."

"Thanks Op."

"My Ma and Eve still up there working out the details?" Jax smirked.

"I'm sure they'll tell me where to show up and what to wear." She told him as the prospect handed her a beer.

"Tara's excited, she's already talking about your bachelorette party which means we get to start planning Hap's bachelor party," the young president grinned widely. "Gonna be epic."

"I'm sure it will be." Madeline took a sip of her beer. "Just remember, I'm not bailing anyone out and if anyone shows up with a tattoo on their face like the guy in The Hangover, I will hurt them." She leaned back in the chair. "I should call Tara and check in; see where her head is at when it comes to the strippers."

"Strippers?" Happy spoke from behind her. "Fuck you want to watch naked chicks for?"

"Not chicks," she glanced over her shoulder. "Male strippers. Tall, muscled, sexy male strippers." Madeline sighed dramatically which drew laughter from everyone but Happy. He growled, but she knew that it was playful, and moved over to stand in front of her. "What?" She asked innocently.

"You are a devil." He reached out for her hand and pulled her to her feet so that he could sit. "Ma was okay?"

"Yeah, Tig was taking her up food and she and Gemma are still talking wedding. I decided I needed to drink to deal with that." Madeline settled down on his lap and laid her head on his shoulder. "I think they want you to wear a suit."

Opie burst out laughing but tried to cover it with up with a cough. It wasn't too successful and earned him a sharp glare from Happy. He gave the same glare to Madeline when she began to giggle. Then suddenly she couldn't stop laughing.

"Mad?" Happy eyed her as if she'd lost her mind. Perhaps she had because instead of giving him an answer she just continued to laugh. "Mad?" He repeated with just the slightest trace of concern.

"Sorry. Sorry." Madeline wiped at her leaking eyes. "I don't know what the hell is wrong with me." She took a long swallow from her bottle of beer. "But you've got to admit that the idea of you in a suit is just..."

"Wrong?" Happy questioned. "Yeah and don't worry, it ain't happening. I'll set them straight."

"Good," she told him. "I need some water. Anyone want one?"

"I'll get them," Darren offered and sprinted towards the house. She'd give the prospect credit, he was always eager.

Time passed quickly, it started to get dark and someone had the idea to throw some food on Madeline's grill. Lyla and Tara ended up showing up with the kids and soon it was very much like a party.

She kept having to show off her ring, Happy kept getting asked if he were sure this was what he wanted and every time he replied yes. It was a big of a surprise to him that he'd made the decision and he had to admit it was the best one that he'd ever made.

"You realize this is like your engagement party, right?" Tara questioned as she came over holding Thomas. "Here, take him. You should get some practice."

"We are not having kids anytime soon." Madeline assured her. She glanced around at everyone having a good time. "Well, this is better than some stuffy party with a sit down dinner."

"Mine was in the middle of the trashed club house, don't ask." Tara shook her head. "You already know that things around here don't always run smoothly so you've got to find time to celebrate the joy. Here, take him." The doctor repeated. "I could really use five minutes of me time."

"Only five minutes?" Madeline didn't miss the way that the woman looked at her husband. She took Thomas and settled him on her hip. "Take a little longer, I'll keep an eye on the little guy."

"Thank you." Tara took off to where Jax stood talking to Opie.

"Come on Thomas, let's go and see what everyone's doing." Madeline listened to him babble with a smile but the second that he started crying she really had no clue what to do with him. Panic flared inside of her. "Aren't you supposed to come with a bag or something?"

Happy watched with amusement and then an unsettled feeling in his stomach as Madeline carried Thomas around, even following her when she found his diaper bag and went to change him. She looked good with a kid, natural and between Thomas and Able she was eventually going to check baby fever. Maybe he should have told her that he didn't want kids, ever. Even with her. But she'd never mentioned wanting them.

"Hey Brother." Jax came over and slapped him on the back several times. "So happy for you, Madeline's a good girl."

"Yeah." Happy nodded.

"Me and Tara are gonna take the kids home, they're beat and so is she but I want to see your Old Lady on the yard tomorrow with her ink." Jax grinned widely. "Good luck with my mother. You're going to need it."

"Figured as much," Happy shook his head. "Shoulda just went to Vegas."

"Too late now Brother, too late."

"Tell her I'm heading inside to set up the table, tell her to get her forehead ready."

"Forehead?" Jax stopped dead in his tracks. It had been done before by other members of SOA but never in the mother charter.

Happy smirked and turned and walked away from the man without an answer. He set up in the kitchen, it had the best light and the table was sturdy enough for Madeline to stretch out on. It took him only a few minutes and when he looked over to the doorway she was standing there. "You ready Girl?"

"I'm ready." Madeline assured him even though the sight of the tattoo gun made her want to cringe. "How do you want me?"

He met her eyes and his low chuckle made her stomach flip. "Shirt off Mad, lay down on the table."

Madeline hadn't planned on stripping down to her bra but was glad she'd worn a decent looking one. Her heart hammered in her chest when she pulled her shirt off; nearly tripping over thin air in her hurry to get to the table.'

"Take it easy Mad, ain't no one gonna stare at you." He knew his brothers would look, they were only human but none would disrespect him by staring or making her uncomfortable. She settled down on the table and he ran his hand over her back softly. "Right here." He settled his hand on the spot between her shoulders and splayed out his hand.

"Okay." She turned her face towards him and smiled. "Am I going to be able to sleep on my back?"

"You never sleep on your back." He pointed out. "You sleep on me."

"You complaining Brother?" Tig asked from the door. "Because I would gladly volunteer to be your replacement." He pulled up a chair and sat down.

Madeline lifted her arm up and flipped Tig off. "In your dreams Tigger, in your dreams."

"You really wanna know about my dreams?" He asked. "Because I will tell you and it looks like we're going to be here a while."

"No," Happy and Madeline replied together.

10 10 10

"I can not believe this bitch." Tiffany Clarkson fumed as she watched the Sons of Anarchy gathered in Ms. Walkers yard. She looked over to Justin Ray. "Do you see this shit?"

"I see the guys that are going to beat my ass to death if they find out I'm the one who ratted on Ms. Walker." He replied. "Starting to think that I shouldn't have done it."

"Don't be a pussy." The girl snapped though it was probably impossible for him. "Look, they aren't going to tell who you are and even if they do it's not like they're going to beat a minor to death." Or at least she didn't think they would; if they did it wouldn't be such a huge loss to her. Boys like Justin were a dime a dozen. Men like the Sons, well they were a different story altogether. They were special and so were the women that they chose. She eyed the prospect, Darren, as he came out of the back door. He certainly wasn't her first choice or even her second but he'd do for now.

"Come on, let's get out of here before they see us." Justin grumbled and pulled up the hood of his sweatshirt. Honestly he just wanted to get away from the house and out of Charming for that matter. The hand job he'd gotten from Tiffany no longer seemed a fair trade for the fire he'd dropped his ass into.

"Yeah, let's go." Tiffany formulated a plan in her mind and smiled with satisfaction.

10 10 10

Madeline somehow managed to doze off with the needle moving in and out of her skin. The pain she feared had been brief and then Happy's repetative motions became almost soothing. Once the fear was gone so were her nerves. She simply laid there staring at her man and making random conversation with Tig.

After a while she just let her eyes close and was content to be lost in her thoughts. As much as she wanted to not think about her work situation it seemed to be at the front of her mind. "Relax." Happy's voice was a growl as his gloved finger poked her in the side. "Fuck you thinking about?"

"Nothing," she lied.

"Don't lie to me. Does it hurt?"

"No. I was just thinking about the lawyer."

"Why?" Happy questioned as he went back to work. He was nearly done and he had to say that he outdid himself. His dick was getting hard just looking at the crow spread in flight between her shoulder blades, his name was beneath it and it marked her forever as his even more so than the ring that he could see on her finger.

"She called before everyone got here. I think that she's a little pissed. I told her that we're engaged."

"Why would she be pissed about that?" He demanded.

"The morals clause in my contrast, says that marrying you will give them reason to say I violated it."

"Wanna call it off?" He asked gruffly. "I can scratch this whole tat out, no problem." Even as he said the words anger flared through him. Madeline let out a cry, the first sound she'd made since he started, as the needle bit into her flesh. "Fuck." He slammed the rig down on the table.

Madeline recognized the look on his face as he slid the stool he'd been perched on back. "Hap." She reached out for his hand.

"Need a break."

Tig had remained quiet this whole time. "I'll find you a beer Brother." He shut the kitchen door behind him as he left.

"You need a break from me or from the ink?" Madeline sat up and felt throbbing pain all over her upper back.

"What the fuck do you think?"

"I love you. That's what I think." She swung her legs off of the table. "I'll tell you like I told the lawyer, they can all kiss my ass if they think some stupid ass morals clause is going to change that. What's more moral than getting fucking married?"

"Not marrying a criminal." He replied. "This ain't the life you wanted."

"No, it's not but it's my life and I love it because you are what I want. You are who I want. You want to change your mind, change it. Tell me to get back on the table and black my fucking back out, take back the ring."

"Mad." He blew out a deep breath. "You know how I feel." It was all that he could say. He'd laid every single one of his cards out on the table earlier and here she was throwing the offer in his face to take it all back.

"And you know how I feel! So what the hell are we arguing about? I don't give a shit about that morals clause. I don't even give a shit about that job if it's put up against my relationship with you!"

"You love teaching."

"Yeah, I do. I can teach somewhere else if it comes down to that. My point is that there's no way that it matters to me more than you do." Madeline sighed. "I just can't help thinking about it and being pissed; pissed that a student I actually like is the one lying about me."

His onyx eyes snapped over to hers. "You know who went to the principal?"

"Yeah, Della told me. I should have told you as soon as I talked to her but everyone was so happy, I didn't want to ruin it."

"Who is he?"

"He's a kid Hap." Madeline sighed.

"He's a fucking punk, a liar! Got you into all of this shit!" He fumed as his hands tightened into fists. "Kid or not, you're telling me who it is right fucking now." There was no room for argument.

"Should I even bother to ask you to promise not to do anything?"

"What do you think?"

"If he disappears after she gave me the name, it's a world of shit for all of us Hap."

"Tell me." He took a step closer to her.

"His name is Justin Ray. He's a Senior. I've never had any problems with him." She reached out her hand. "Brains before bullets, right? Isn't that what the plaque in the Chapel says?"

"A bullet is too good for this fuck." Happy looked down at his girl, saw fear in her eyes and exhaled. "Relax, I ain't doing shit right now. Get your ass back on that table."

Madeline stretched up and kissed him. "Love you."

"Yeah, I know. Now back on the table."

She'd just got back into position when there was a loud knock on the front door. "Fucking cops." He pushed the stool back once more. "Stay here."

"How do you know that it's the cops?"

"Sheriff's Department! Open the door." A voice called out as the knock sounded again.

Happy shot her a small smirk. "I know cops Girl." He shook his head. "Ain't never going to finish this ink at this rate. Stay here, I'm going to go and see what they want."

"Should I put my shirt on?"

"Gonna fuck up the ink, just stay here." Happy strode out the kitchen door and walked through the living room. "Yeah?" He said in a disinterested tone.

"Got a report of public drinking and drug use at this address." Sheriff Eli Roosevelt managed to not look intimidated by the taller man.

"Must have been a prank call." Tig suggested.

"Maybe a neighbor pissed that they didn't get invited to this little get together." Kozik chimed in.

"Got a warrant?" Happy looked back at the Sheriff.

"Bet your ass I do. Stand aside." The man ordered.

"A warrant?" Madeline had crept to listen to the conversation at the kitchen door. "There has never been a complaint about noise or anything at this house and you show up with a warrant after one call? Are you shitting me?"

"I assure you, I am not shitting you." The man smiled slightly. "We're just going to take a look around. What's the harm in that if you've got nothing to hide?"

"This is bullshit." Madeline told him. "Do what you want because it's what you're going to do anyway." She adjusted the towel that she'd held over her breasts and stomach.

"You want to put a shirt on Ms. Walker?" Roosevelt questioned.

"I'll strip bare ass and walk around, you might have a warrant but this is my house." Madeline's temper had a short fuse these days and she knew it. She exhaled and tried to calm herself. With everything that had happened in the past few weeks, the invasion of the Sheriff's department had just pushed her over her own personal edge.

"Mad." Happy's voice was a warning as he shook his head. "Go in the kitchen, I'll wrap you up."

"Need everyone to stay where I can see that. Don't look at me like that Lowman or you'll all be on your knees with your hands behind your head. In case you all haven't realized it yet, I'm in charge of Charming."

"I've got something." One of the deputies walked in through the front door with a bag in his hand. "Found it in the backyard."

"Anyone care to claim this marijuana? Looks like it's almost an ounce, way more than what's allowed for personal or medical use." The Sheriff opened up and evidence bag and the deputy dropped it in. "Anyone?" He chuckled. "Didn't think so. Alright, tear this place apart. Let's see what else we."

"I'm supposed to believe that you just stumbled over that in the backyard?" Madeline let out a snort of annoyance. "This is bullshit."

"Mad." Happy shook his head again. He couldn't say that she was wrong about it being bullshit but he recognized the look in the Sheriff's eyes. The man was tired of being made to look stupid by the Sons so he was now out for anything that he could use against them.

"Listen to your Old Man." The Sheriff said dryly. "Now someone is going to tell me who this belongs to or I'm going to take you all in."

"It's mine." Madeline said before anyone else could speak. She heard Happy growl next to her and knew that her declaration hadn't pleased him but she also knew that she was the only one in the room with no record.

"Madeline Walker, you are under arrest for possession of marijuana." Roosevelt motioned for the deputy to step forward. "Make sure that she knows her rights."

"I want a lawyer. Oh wait, I've got a lawyer. Call her, Della Edmond." She looked over at Happy as the deputy stepped forward with his cuffs out.

"You're really going to cuff her for this shit?" Happy demanded of the Sheriff. "Worried that she can take your deputy down Roosevelt?" His body was practically vibrating with anger and he felt Chibs and Tig move to his back. No doubt they thought that he was going to do something stupid and the truth was, he was thinking about it. "Leave her the fuck out of this, that shit is mine."

"What in the world is going on here?" Eve spoke from hall. Gemma was at her side. "Oh, would you look at that Gemma? They found my weed."

Roosevelt let out a groan. "Am I seriously going to have to take the three of you in for this?"

"Take me too." Gemma cocked a hand on her hip.

"I'll go. Sounds fucking fun." Tig chuckled.

"Fuck it, I'm in." Kozik added.

"You people are seriously screwed up." The Sheriff told them.

"No, not screwed up Sheriff." Eve took several steps forward and it was obvious how frail she was. "Obviously they're all just scared that you're going to take a terminally ill woman into custody for the only thing that brings her comfort. Now, if you'd like to arrest me I suggest you do so because I've taken my night time pills, soon I'll be asleep."

"She's got a card." Gemma spoke up. "They give special consideration to people at the stage where they need hospice."

The Sheriff let out a loud sigh. "I'm confiscating this and I want to see that card."

"I'll get it." Happy growled the words and looked between his mother and his girl. Between the two of them, they were going to be the death of him. "Ma, get your ass back to bed. You know that you shouldn't be walking around." He looked over to Madeline.

She knew that she was in deep shit as he stalked down the hall with Eve. He returned a few moments later with the card. Sheriff Roosevelt didn't really have much to say once he saw the card with the special status that Eve had so recently achieved. "I'm sorry about your mother." He said shortly to Happy. "It's late. I suggest that you break up this gathering."

"Yeah, we'll take that under consideration." Tig said dryly as he rose to his feet and followed the police to the door and shut it behind them. "Well, it can't really be considered a party until the pigs show up."

"The fuck were you thinking?" Happy's hand shot out and grabbed Madeline's arm.

She sputtered off protests as he dragged her into the kitchen. "Jesus Hap, let me talk." She pleaded as he pressed her against the counter. "I'm the only person here without a record, except maybe Ma. It was just a little weed."

"You never do that shit again. He's after us for the club, he'd have made sure the charges were more than just a little fucking weed. How well do you think that you'd do in prison? Huh?" He tightened his grip on her arm.

"Better than I'd do if it was you on your third strike!" She told him. "Because if you go away Hap, I won't be able to take it. That's why I stepped up and said that it was mine."

"Anything ever happens to me, you'll be taken care of." He said gruffly but his anger was softening because he could understand what she had tried to do. Hell, it made him proud the way that she'd stood there and faced the Sheriff.

"I don't want to be taken care of, I want you." Madeline realized his anger was deflating. "Hap?"

"Yeah?"

"You're hurting my arm."

He released her and saw the angry red marks against her pale skin. "Do that shit again and I'll beat your ass, got it?"

"Got it?"

"The fuck am I going to do with you?" He shook his head as she tried to look ashamed. She failed miserably. "Get your ass on the table Girl."


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I made a HUGE boo boo and posted chapter 11 as chapter 10. Blame it on the Nyquil I've been taking for the cold that will not go away. So I'm reposting in the proper order. HUGE apologies to everyone. I can't believe that I did that.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Eve didn't look well. Madeline frowned with concern as she made the woman a cup of tea like she had every morning since the woman had moved in. It had been almost a week since they'd brought her home with them. "Are you feeling okay?" She questioned.

"I'm feeling as good as I can." Eve replied. "How about you?"

"I'm fine Ma, I'm great." Madeline set the tea down. "Do you want something special for breakfast?" Happy had left before dawn, something with the club. She wasn't sure what but if it was important he would tell her.

"Just some toast. You should eat something too." The woman pointed out. "You're too skinny."

"I'll have some toast too." Honestly Madeline wasn't even hungry enough to eat the toast but she'd do it to keep Eve from worrying. "I've got to meet with the lawyer again this morning."

It was almost a daily occurrence. Della Edmond was ready to strangle her, she was sure of it. They'd met to discuss the upcoming wedding, the presence of the police at her house the night of the impromptu engagement party and to discuss the best course of action for proving that Justin Ray was a liar.

"Who's coming over to watch me?" Eve rolled her dark eyes.

"Gemma." Madeline replied. The woman might not have made up her mind to like her but she loved Eve. "She's got more wedding magazines."

"She told Happy he has to wear a suit."

Madeline nearly dropped the mugs of tea that she was carrying to the table. "And what did he say?"

"He told her that he'll get on his bike and take you to Vegas or Reno if anyone mentions the word suit to him again." Eve's smile was proud. "He'll be wearing his cut."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

"I hope that I get to see it."

"You will, it's only three weeks until the wedding."

"I'm not sure that I will." Eve grabbed Madeline's arm as she went to move to pop slices of bread into the toaster. "When I'm gone, he's going to be yours to take care of. It's not going to be pretty."

"Ma, please don't talk like that."

"Girl, I'm dying. Look at me. Truth is, I'm not sad about it. I'm tired. Tired of hurting, tired of having to have a god damn babysitter like a child. It's going to happen and when it does I need to know that you're going to be able to take care of him."

"I'm going to do my best."

"Going to have to do better than that. No matter what happens you can not let him push you away and he's going to try despite that ink and that ring. He'll be mean and hurtful because he's going to be hurting." Eve spoke in a strong voice that defied her fragile appearance. "After his sperm donor father left we just had one another. It was like that for a long time. Sometimes I think not having a man around when he was younger is why he is the way that he is, why he does what he does." Eve kept her grip on Madeline's arm. "Tell me that you're not going to leave him, no matter what."

"I love him Ma. I'm not going anywhere. I promise. And quit talking about you dying, I'm not in denial but you've got time still." But as Madeline looked down at the woman she realized it might not be outside the scope of possibility that she wouldn't make it to the wedding. "Speaking of the wedding, how far have you and Gemma got with the plans?"

"Everything is pretty much set. The reservation is reserved, Gemma says brothers from all charters are going to come down."

"Do you really think that you aren't going to make it the three weeks to the wedding?"

Eve sat up straighter and seemed to appreciate Madeline's blunt question. "No. I don't."

In that instant Madeline made her decision. "Tell Gemma to move everything up. Anything that can't be rescheduled, we don't need."

"I want you to have the wedding you want."

"I want you at our wedding. We both know my family isn't coming Ma. You and Happy are my family now. Tell Gemma to make the changes or we'll just go to City Hall." Madeline felt tears sting the back of her eyes. "Please."

"Oh baby girl, come here." Eve pulled her close. "I know that it's scary but you're a strong bitch. If you ever doubt that you just put your hand on your back, my son wouldn't have given that ink to just anyone." She pressed a kiss to Madeline's forehead. "Now get your shit together and go to that meeting."

"Yes Ma." Madeline sniffled and wiped at her face. "Did I ruin my makeup?"

"Nope." Eve replied. She kept a smile on her face for her daughter's benefit, that was truly how she thought of Madeline despite the short amount of time they'd known one another. She'd known well before Happy brought her to Bakersfield the first time that there was someone in his life. Never in a million years had she imagined that it was the right girl, this girl standing in front of her. "Now get out of here."

"I've got my phone, call me if you need anything and I mean anything!" Madeline insisted as she gathered her keys and purse.

"Of course." Eve waited until the other woman had left before slumping down in the chair. It was a lot of effort to sit up straight but she wasn't about to face Gemma Teller-Morrow lying down, not when she was about to undo all the woman's hard work.

11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11

"Where is Justin Ray?" Della Edmond wasted no time in asking the question as soon as the door shut behind Madeline. "Before you say anything, I need to know everything because this is turning into a cluster fuck of epic proportions."

"What are you talking about? What do you mean where is Justin Ray?" Madeline took a seat across from her lawyer. "Isn't he supposed to be here with his attorney?"

"His attorney called, seems that the Rays' went to wake their son up for this important meeting and found his room empty. There was a note but they both swear that he wouldn't have just up and taken off on his own. So, I repeat where is Justin Ray?"

"I have no idea."

"What about your Old Man?"

"Excuse me?"

"Do you prefer fiance, biker lover or some other term of endearment? God damn it, you're supposed to be a smart woman!"

"I am a smart woman." Madeline said as she felt the flames of her temper coming to life inside of her. "And my Old Man has nothing to do with this." Even if he had left well before dawn without much explanation. No, there was no way that Happy had a hand in this. "If he took off that just proves that he's got something to hide; like the fact that he's lying through his teeth!"

"I'm not sure that him disappearing is going to win you any favor points," Della explained. "Being he made no mention of taking off to anyone that we know of, it seems more like he disappeared with help. If you combine that with your associations..." the woman didn't have to say anything else.

"I had nothing to do with this. Happy had nothing to do with this. The Club had nothing to do with this." Madeline growled the words through clenched teeth. "Start acting like a lawyer and do whatever it is that you do to make his leaving an advantage for us," she suggested. "Now, I've got more important things to do than sit here and listen to you make baseless accusations."

"The way things look right now you're going to have a lot of free time on your hands," Della advised. "I can act like a lawyer all I want but we both know that gossip fuels the small town of Charming and it's going to get to the school board that you're engaged to a Son and that Justin Ray went missing. Shit! Do you know how bad this looks?"

"I don't really care because neither of us had a damn thing to do with it." Madeline got up from her chair. "Do your job." She left the office because she actually feared that she was going to hit the smug woman straight in the face. Maybe Happy was rubbing off on her and if that was the case, she was glad.

For too long she'd kept her mouth shut and her head down and she was done with it. Madeline couldn't be sure what had flipped that switch inside of her but it was flipped and there was no going back.

11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11

Happy brought the tow truck to a stop and poked Kozik. "Get up."

"We left Charming at the ass crack of dawn to come here?" The blonde man rubbed his eyes and looked out the window at the junk yard in front of them. "We out here so that you can whack me or something?"

"Nah, got to see a man about a car. You coming with me or what?" Without waiting for a response Happy got out of the truck and lit a cigarette. He approached the rusted metal gates of the yard and they opened slowly. "Hey Hector."

"Hey Happy, good to see you Man. I got what you're looking for. Sorry it took me so long." The younger man motioned for him to come him. "What's up?" He nodded at Kozik.

"Right over here, brand new with only like five hundred miles on it. Right now it's black with dark gray interior but you could always change the color. Got all the bells and whistles, everything that your girl could want."

"What do I owe ya?"

"Nothing man, as many times as you saved my ass back in the day I won't take your money. Tell your mom that I miss her cooking. Miss having her around."

"I'll tell her," Happy said gruffly. "And thanks man, appreciate it."

Kozik had walked over to look at the truck, the Dodge Durango was definitely a step up from the death trap Mazda that Madeline was driving. When Happy walked over, he couldn't resist grinning. "She's got you whipped Killa."

Happy grunted in response because he couldn't say that his Brother was wrong. Madeline did have him whipped. Fuck, he loved her. "Shut the fuck up." He added when Kozik chuckled. "Help me get this shit hooked up, want to have it at the house when she gets back from seeing the lawyer."

"Let's do this."

11 11 11 11 11

Gemma eyed Madeline as she lit a cigarette and exhaled a stream of smoke. "I'm not a fucking miracle worker, you know."

"That's not what I've heard." Madeline wished she had a beer instead of Diet Coke but took a sip anyway. "Were you able to switch everything?"

"Nearly everything," Gemma admitted. "I was dead set to be pissed at you but then I realized what you're doing." She eyed Madeline for a moment. "Can't say I ever really understood what Happy saw in you or that I even liked you before today but I realize what you're doing for Eve."

"Gee, thanks Gemma." Madeline got up and walked over to the freezer. She took out chicken breasts to make for dinner and left them on the counter to defrost.

"What? It's the truth. You want me to lie to you Sweetheart?"

"No. I knew you couldn't stand me, never understood why." She looked over at the woman and waited for an answer as to why. It was Gemma so she should have known better than to expect one.

"You can put that chicken back. Neeta's making some stuff so you don't have to worry about cooking, she'll bring over the stuff that I made too. After all, you've got a ton of shit to do before Friday. Don't worry about your hair and stuff, Tara and I will take you to the place we go to."

Suddenly it hit Madeline, today was Monday so in four days she would be getting married to the man that she loved more than anything in the world. "Thank you Gemma, for everything."

"You're welcome Baby." Gemma stubbed out her cigarette. "The hell is that noise?"

"It sounds like the tow truck." Madeline started for the living room. "What the hell?" She couldn't understand why Kozik was hooking the Mazda up to the tow truck. "There's nothing wrong with my car. Kozik! What the hell are you doing?" She was shouting even before she got the door open.

Happy hid his grin as Madeline stopped dead in her tracks on the porch. Her eyes met his where he stood next to the Durango. "I told him to tow that shit, finally going to put it out of its misery."

"Hap?" Confusion was obvious on her face as she started down off the porch. "I..."

"Catch." He tossed the keys at her and out of reflex she caught them. "What are these for?"

"For a teacher, she's pretty slow Hap." Gemma lit another cigarette from her position on the porch.

"She'll get it." He knew that she would. His girl was smart but she never expected anything from him. That made it easier to give things to her because she always reacted honestly, was always surprised that he would think of her. "C'mon Mad, don't make me a liar."

"It's for me? Are you shitting me?" Madeline let out a high pitched scream and launched herself at Happy. At that moment she didn't give a damn about his preferences when it came to public displays of affection, he'd brought her a truck. A beautiful brand new truck! She'd never had a brand new car before.

Madeline pressed her lips to Happy's and her arms went around his neck. He lifted her as if it were the most natural thing in the world, because with her it was. "You like it?"

"I love it and I love you. I love you so much."

"That's good since we're getting hitched next Friday."

"Oh yeah, about that. It's this Friday."

"What?" His brows knit together.

"I decided that I didn't want to wait. I'd marry you right now if we could get away with it without Gemma and Eve killing us." Madeline loved it when he held her like this. She was just at the perfect level to kiss him again.

"Alright." He wasn't going to argue with her, not with that look in her eye. There was something that she wasn't telling him but he'd get it out of her. "You ready to go for your first ride?"

"It's not my first ride." She grinned and shifted her body ever so slightly so that they were pressed perfectly against one another.

"I was talking about the truck Mad."

11 11 11

Della Edmond sighed as she opened the bottom drawer of her desk. She took out the bottle of Scotch she kept there and poured a healthy amount into her coffee mug. If she had a time machine right then she'd have gone back to the moment she agreed to take the Walker case and kept her big mouth shut. It was supposed to have been an easy win, something to impress the powers that be because she'd done good for their biggest client, instead it was turning out to be a cluster fuck of epic proportions.

Justin Ray's body had been found in his car just outside the Charming border in Lodi. The Lodi medical examiner was tentatively calling it a drug overdose but there was heavy doubt due to the fact that Justin Ray had only recently passed a drug test for the high school football team.

Theoretically the dead teenager should mean the end of the case and the win that she so craved; nothing was ever that easy for her. She'd immediately put in a call to the school board once she'd heard from her source at Lodi PD and extended her and Madeline Walker's sympathies for the boys tragic passing. They'd informed her that they'd made their final decision, Madeline Walker was no longer employed by Charming Board of Education and they welcomed her to try and sue them.

Della tossed back the Scotch and poured another. It was going to be a long ass night.

11 11 11

They drove halfway to Bakersfield because Madeline turned around to head back to Charming. "I can't believe that you did this Hap. You know that I was fine with the Mazda right?"

"I wasn't fine with the Mazda, shit was always breaking down." He smirked at the thought of the car being destroyed. He wanted to see that. "You really like it?"

"Yes, a million times yes. This started out a really shitty day and ended up so amazing."

"Why shitty?" Happy demanded. "What happened at the lawyer?"

"Justin Ray is missing. She thinks that we had something to do with."

"And you? You think I had a hand in it?"

"No." Madeline replied without hesitation. "You said that you wouldn't and I know that you wouldn't lie to me. But if he doesn't show up and recant, how in the world do I defend myself against a missing kid? Shit. You know how bad it looks." For the first time she was starting to suspect that she was really going to lose her job. The funny thing about that was it didn't fill her with the panic that she expected.

Happy nodded, he knew just how bad it looked. If they were already judging her for the company she kept than this was just going to be another nail in her career coffin. "I'm sorry Mad."

"Don't be. There's nothing either of us could have done to stop this. I don't know why he lied, maybe we'll never know, and there's nothing we can do about that either." She sighed. "If I get fired, I'll figure something out."

"You could help Gemma out at the garage. She's always bitching that Chucky rhymes when he speaks or speaks in French, drives her bat shit." He looked over at her. "Or you can just stay home, do whatever it is that people do when they stay home all day?"

"Eat yummy snacks and watch daytime television? That could be fun for a while."

"Not too many snacks, don't want your ass getting fat." He warned her.

"You'd love my ass even if it was fat."

Happy just grinned, she was probably right about that. He'd never expected to feel this way for her but now that he did he wouldn't change it for anything in the world. "You want to tell me why you moved up the wedding?"

Madeline tightened her grip on the wheel. She'd known that he would see through her just simply not wanting to wait any longer than she had to. "Ma isn't feeling so well, wanted to give her something to get excited about."

Happy read between the lines. "Are you saying that you don't think she's going to make it until next week?" His hands tightened into fists and his voice was deeper than usual.

"I don't know," Madeline admitted. "I don't think that she thinks she's going to make it. I'm so sorry Baby." She reached over and squeezed his arm. Her other hand moved on the wheel to pull the truck over to the side of the road to give him her full attention.

"What are you stopping for?" He growled the words. "Keep fucking driving."

"Alright." She squeezed his arm tighter. "I love you Hap."

"I know." He unclenched one hand and placed it over hers. "Let's just get back to Ma."

It took another thirty minutes to get to Charming and that was with Madeline keeping her foot on the gas the entire time. They rode in silence the whole way and when they got to the house he was out of the truck before it was in park. She watched him go, knew that he was going to need a moment alone with his mother.

She remained in the car that he'd brought her and let the tears that she'd been holding back flow. She hadn't wanted to cry in front of him, didn't need him to see her lose it. After several moments she managed to pull it together, dried her tears and got out of the car. She'd barely made it onto the porch when she saw the Sheriff's cruiser pull up at the curb. "What fucking now?" She grumbled to herself as Sheriff Roosevelt got out of the car. "Can I help you?" She called loud enough for her voice to carry to him.

"I need to talk to you Ms. Walker. It's about a young man named Justin Ray, you're familiar with him right?"

"What about him?"

"I'd much rather discuss this at the station. Is Mr. Lowman here? I've got some questions for him too."

"He's with his mother." Madeline looked over at the man. "Can't you just talk to us here?"

"I can do that." The man seemed to soften some at the mention of Eve. "To be clear, you're inviting me into your home?"

"Yes, Sheriff Roosevelt," she sighed. "Come on, I'll make a pot of coffee." Madeline figured that he was there because of Justin disappearing and wanted to just get the questions over with.

"That's very kind of you." The man followed her in. "Justin Ray was found dead in Lodi late this afternoon, you wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

Happy answered for her as he came down the stairs. "No, she wouldn't."

"Lowman." Roosevelt nodded at him. "Care to let Ms. Walker answer for herself?"

"I don't know anything about his death or disappearance Sheriff Roosevelt, quite honestly it sort of sucks for me." Madeline spoke bluntly because she realized this was the worst possible outcome of his vanishing. "Because now he can't recant and tell the school board he was lying about me and he was lying. I am not the type of person to threaten a teenager."

"You can see why people would think that either you or Mr. Lowman had incentive to want Justin Ray dead and gone, can't you?"

"Didn't you just hear me?" Madeline snapped. "This makes my life harder, not better and I've got enough shit on my plate right now. I had nothing to do with this. Happy had nothing to do with this. We both have people who can verify where we were the entire day. Now, I can give you that information but if you want more you can call our lawyers."

Happy watched the change in her with a grin he didn't bother to conceal. He couldn't believe how she kept surprising him, how he could feel so much pride that she wasn't exactly the mild mannered woman he'd met. Being with him had changed her as much as it had changed him, it was good to know that he wasn't alone. "You heard my Old Lady Roosevelt, what's it going to be?"

"I'll need those alibis." The Sheriff looked between them both. "And if they don't check out you're going to need those lawyers that you mentioned.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Okay the chapter snafu has been fixed. These are all the correct ones. So sorry for the mistake again, but here is brand new material. I think that you'll all enjoy it, I loved writing it.

CHAPTER TWELVE.

The alibis that they'd given Roosevelt checked out as Madeline had known they would. She couldn't say that the man wasn't disappointed by the fact but he'd left the house and left them alone.

By mutual unspoken agreement they'd headed upstairs to Eve's room and told her about their day, even the part about the Sheriff and Justin Ray. That led to a longer conversation about just who Justin Ray was. By the time that they were done Madeline was as exhausted as Eve.

"Can we just go to bed?" She asked Happy with a yawn.

"Come on Mad." He draped his arm around her shoulder. Truthfully the last thing that he wanted was to lie in bed and stare at the ceiling while he faced the fact that the end was truly near for his mother. He wanted to go out, get drunk and start some shit; he'd feel better if he could just pound some asshole into the ground but he wouldn't do any of those things. Instead he'd take his woman to bed, try and comfort her if that was what she needed.

"I know that I should have called Della Edmond before we go to bed but I... I just can't face it right now."

"It's alright." He ran his hand over her upper arm as they entered the bedroom. "You want a shower?"

"You going to join me?" She looked up at him with hopeful eyes.

"What do you think?"

12 12 12

Tiffany waited just down the street from Teller-Morrow half hidden in shadows of one of the buildings. She checked her phone and cursed Darren for being late yet again. This was the third time in as many days that he'd kept her waiting. She was done with this shit. It was time to find another outlet to get her into the Son's eventual good graces. What did he think? That she was some kind of whore he could just keep waiting as long as he pleased?

She paced as she fumed, smoking a cigarette all the way down to the filter before making up her mind that she was leaving. Let him show up and find her gone, that would serve him right. Having to find another way to get in with the club was not what she needed right now.

"Hey Tiffany." Darren appeared on the other side of the alley. "Sorry, club business. Got a lot of Brother's coming in, it's a lot of work."

"A lot of Brothers?" She questioned as her mind kicked into overdrive. How had she forgotten about the other charters? Maybe that was where she would find the Son who was going to make her his old lady. "When?"

"They'll be here Friday." He told her. "Maybe you could come to the party, there's going to be so many people here I could get you in and then we could go back to one of the rooms."

"That sounds perfect." She purred, her body already shifted towards him and her hand heading South. Her fingers moved over his length and it took effort to hide her smile. It was too easy with Darren. All that she really needed was to get in the door, after that she'd do the work. Just like she was going to do the work now.

Without hesitation Tiffany dropped to her knees and released Darren from the confines of his jeans. Sometimes a woman just had to do what she had to do, it was all worth it for the bigger goal.

12 12 12

The last place that Della Edmond wanted to be was on Madeline Walker's front porch but the woman would not answer her phone. So there she stood, in a horribly expensive suit waiting to speak the words she dreaded; she'd lost. They'd lost. Madeline was no longer a teacher in Charming and all that came with it.

Happy opened the door and eyed the prim lawyer. "What?" he demanded.

"I need to speak to Ms. Walker please." Della told him. The tall bald headed biker made her feel pretty uncomfortable and she was surely going to feel even more so once she broke the news.

He grunted and she took that as an invitation to enter. Immediately she liked the house, it was painted in warm colors with simple furniture but it felt like a home.

"Hap, who was at the..." Madeline trailed off at the sight of Della. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to speak with you regarding the case." This was the part she was dreading. "The school board has decided, they've terminated your employment contract." Della sucked in a deep breath. "And it's a given that they're not going to give you a good recommendation for another position. I'm sorry that it came to this but the Ray boy dying pushed them to act."

"And they acted out of fear and hate." Madeline forced the words out. It was one thing to think that she was going to be fired, to actually being fired was another. No recommendation for a job made it an even more bitter pill to swallow. With the accusation against her she'd be lucky to find a teaching job anywhere, not to even think about finding one in commuting distance.

"Nothing else you can do?" Happy's eyes were focused on Della, his rage obvious. Her fear of him was obvious as well, he could practically smell it in the air.

"We could file a lawsuit but I advise against it. The second the papers are filed it's public knowledge. The public likes a good teacher scandal and will eat up a dead kid being involved."

"No lawsuit," Madeline told them. "I don't want to drag this out. It's over, done. Let's just forget about it."

Happy knew that she was hurting. He saw it in her eyes and it pissed him off even more. "Get out," he snapped with a glare in Della's direction. The second that she turned towards the door he stepped forward. "Come here."

Madeline flew into his arms, nestled her face against his chest. "What the fuck am I going to do now Hap?"

"We'll figure it out." It was all that he could think to say. He ran his hands over her back. "What can I do?"

"This." Madeline wrapped her arms around him tight. "This is perfect. We're getting married in three days."

"That's right." He pressed his lips to her forehead. "You're a strong bitch Mad, don't forget it. We'll figure it out."

"I know." Madeline stretched up to kiss him. "Take me upstairs."

"Yes, I will." He grabbed her and lifted her up. She tensed. "Ain't going to drop you Girl." He settled her over his shoulder and smacked her ass hard.

"Hap!" Madeline gasped. "Ma's going to hear us."

"Not if you keep your mouth shut."

"Maybe you could shut it for me," she suggested. Her hand moved down to his lower back suggestively.

"You're about to get it." Happy smacked her ass again, this time harder than the last.

"Bring it on," Madeline challenged. "I'm not scared of you."

Before Happy could reply the doorbell rang. "Got to be shitting me." He growled. "GO AWAY!" he shouted in the general direction of the door.

"It's me Brother." Chibs called out. "Jax needs you both down at the club house. Sent up Kozik to keep an eye on Eve."

"Fuck my life." Madeline groaned as she was lowered to the floor. "I'll go grab a sweater."

"I'll tell Ma that we're leaving." Happy looked down at her. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, I'm going to be alright. How can I not be? I have you."

"Got me forever." Happy moved his hands to her ink. "Getting inked tomorrow at the bachelor party."

"You are?" Madeline settled down flat on her feet with a sigh. "We shouldn't keep Jax waiting."

12 12 12

"You are a fucking shit head." Tig shook his head in disgust as he glared at Darren. "How could you not follow simple fucking instruction?" He jerked his finger in the general direction of Tiffany. "Told you to steer clear of that twat, she's nothing but trouble."

"She ain't a twat. I love her." Darren protested. "And I wasn't bringing her here!"

"I don't give a shit where you were fucking her." Tig lit a cigarette with a smirk. "You love her? You're just pussy whipped Kid, trust me. Bitches like her are a dime a dozen."

"She's special." Darren insisted so seriously that Tig felt a pang of pity for the kid.

"It's not all his fault." Tiffany spoke up to their surprise. "I chased him, I chased hard. I kind of wouldn't take no for an answer." The grin that she flashed Tig was a practiced mix of seduction and innocence. "And I know I shouldn't have but I... he was so great to me that night I was being followed, I fell in love with him too."

"Shoot me fucking now." Tig requested. "Alright Prospect, pussy or patch?"

"What?"

"Pick between rocking that Prospect cut or fucking that cunt." Tig said bluntly. "Choose."

12 12 12

"You should head over to the office Love." Chibs told Madeline as she got off Happy's bike. "You Brother, come with me to Church. Got something to deal with."

"Go." Happy leaned down and kissed her quickly.

"Be safe." She whispered when he pulled away. She remained where she was until the men had gone inside of the clubhouse and then headed to the office. "Gemma?" She wondered why there were no lights on. "Gemma?"

The lights flipped on. "Surprise!" Gemma, Tara, Lyla and Luann shouted at once. "Got you." Tara grinned playfully. "Okay, time for you to change because the bus will be here any minute."

"Bus?" Madeline blinked.

"The bachelorette party Maddy, come on we said surprise. We're going tonight instead of tomorrow. The guys are going out as well." The doctor explained. "No questions. Just go. Luann and Gemma worked really hard to pick you out the perfect outfit."

Madeline resisted the urge to sigh though it could have been worse; Lyla could have been tasked with dressing her. "I think I need a drink."

"I've got that covered Hon, don't you worry." Luann held up a bottle of champagne. "This is going to be so much fun."

12 12 12 12

Happy stared at his Brothers. They all wore identical shit eating grins. He'd known something was up when he walked into the clubhouse and saw the strippers hanging around. Real strippers, not the ameaturer bitches who hung around. "And here's the man of the hour, the last Brother I thought would get himself an Old Lady." Jax spoke with a wide grin and held up his beer. "And one hell of a lady she is."

"But tonight, we party." Tig called out. "And get laid!" He held up his beer as well. "To Happy."

Happy took the beer Juice handed him and toasted with his Brothers. "Thanks Pres." He approached Jax and offered his hand. "I see Kozik, who's with Ma?"

"Destroyer." The president named a Nomad who Happy had ridden with for several years. "Said he'd rather hang with your ma than with you."

Happy cracked a smile. "Bet he did." Though they'd bumped heads a few times he knew that he could trust Destroyer, the fact that the man had a med school background only made him feel more at ease. "Who got all the bitches?"

"Little pre-wedding present from Otto. He heard about the party and got Luann to call in a favor from the owner of Delta's." Delta's was the premier strip club in Oakland. "All for you Brother."

Happy was perfectly content just fucking Madeline, that woman knew how to move her body but he was still a man. He could look, enjoy and appreciate. Plus there was something about a lap dance. "What the fuck are you two waiting for?" Tig demanded as he all but bounced over. "Let's fucking do this!"

12 12 12

Madeline woke to the feeling of an arm elbowing her side. "Shit Hap, that hurts. You've got some bony ass elbows." Grumpy because she could already feel her hangover she rolled over and screamed.

Tara did the same and they both shot up from where they were passed out a couch neither of them recognized. "Whoa." The doctor held a hand to her chest. "Okay, how did we..."

"What the hell are you wearing?" It was a question screaming to be asked, the conservative woman had on a skirt that was the size of a handkerchief, a tight cropped top and boots that laced up to her knee.

"Why is everyone screaming?" Lyla demanded from the floor. She sat up and rubbed the back of her head. "Where the fuck are we?"

"I have no idea." A sound halfway between a sob and a laugh escaped Madeline's throat. "I don't remember anything after leaving the club. Happy's going to kill me."

"Jax is going to kill me."

"Opie is definitely going to kick my ass especially since I've got this new tattoo." Lyla peeled back the covering on her upper thigh to reveal several large and colorful flowers on her side. "Fuck."

"Would all you little bitches just shut up? I've got a headache." All of their heads snapped to where Gemma stood with her arms crossed over her chest. She had on a white bathrobe and looked annoyed to be awake. "No one's getting killed, I called and let them all know we were staying at my friends. As far as you with the ink, better hope he thinks it's hot."

"What friend were they okay with us staying with?"

"That would be me." A Hispanic man stepped into the doorway behind Gemma and placed his hand on one of her hips. "I'm Nero, it's a pleasure to meet you all."

The three women stared in shock, no one able to think of a thing to say. "It's nice to meet you too." Madeline blurted out. "Thanks for letting us stay?" She glanced to Tara and Lyla who both looked away.

"Again, it was a pleasure," he smiled. "Any friend of Gemma's is a friend of mine. I'll let you ladies have some time, I've got work to do downstairs." Nero pressed a kiss to Gemma's cheek and walked out of the room.

Gemma held up her hand to stop them all from speaking. "Get your shit together Ladies, we should be heading back to Charming."

12 12 12

Happy woke up on the couch in the clubhouse with Juice sprawled out next to him. Normally he wouldn't have cared about sharing the couch with a Brother but in this case he did, the man was as naked as the day he was born. "Wake the fuck up."

Juice jolted awake and tumbled off of the couch. "Fuck, where are my clothes?"

"No clue." Happy rose to his feet. "I'm heading out. Gonna go home, shower and shit."

"Smart, get rid of the evidence before Maddy gets back." Juice located his boxers on the floor and pulled them on. "What the fuck was I doing to lose my clothes?"

"Some blonde, then some redhead and then the redhead and the blonde at once."

"Epic." Juice grinned. "Best bachelor party ever."

It had been a good night, they'd gotten drunk, watched the girls from Delta's perform and sat through countless lap dances. He'd drawn the line at doing anything else. Happy realized that if he wasn't the club's killer he'd have probably gotten some shit from his brothers about it. He stretched his arms over his head, left Juice to find the rest of his clothes and walked out the club house door.

He found Jax and Opie sitting at the picnic table, both men with identical pissed off expressions on their faces. "What's going on?" Happy pulled a cigarette out and lit it.

"Waiting for the girls, Mom just called and said that they're on the way." The president explained. "Said that they had a great time."

"What's the problem?"

"They had a really great time." Opie growled the words and passed over his prepay to Happy. "Go on Brother, just scroll through."

The pictures on the phone started out mild, all of the women obviously drunk and crammed into a booth at some fancy club. They alternated between posing for the camera and being caught unaware. Happy continued to go through them. The second he saw the brightly lit tattoo place appear in one of the pictures his jaw clenched. If Madeline had let someone else ink her, he was going to lose his fucking mind. But it was Lyla on the table. "Least it looks like good work." He commented and moved on to the next picture. "What the fuck?"

"Yup, they ended up at Diosa." Jax had put his first through a wall when he'd first seen the pictures of Nero's escorts playing dress up with Tara.

"Gemma thought that his was a good idea?" Happy demanded but didn't really need the answer. Gemma's escort running, former gang banger gentleman friend was a well known secret among the Charming Brothers. No one really said much, what could be said? She was a grown woman, capable of her choices and she'd made it crystal clear that she and Clay were done with.

The older man no longer even came around the yard. Most people thought that he was off somewhere licking his wounds and feeling sorry for himself but Happy wasn't most people. In the past few years he'd seen a change in the man who had been his President and it wasn't a change for the better. His money was on Clay being off somewhere hatching a scheme to take back the gavel from his step-son.

Happy passed the phone back to Opie and sat down next to his brothers to wait. At least Madeline had the good sense, even shit faced drunk, to not get any ink or have a hooker inspired makeover. But he'd sit and wait with his brothers, give her just a little bit of hell so his reputation didn't suffer. After that he was taking her home, checking on his mother and then taking his little redheaded devil up to their bedroom for the ride of her life.

"Shit. Shit. Shit." Tara stomped her boot clad foot against the floor of the bus. "They're waiting outside."

"Fuck my life." Layla sighed.

"You girls are way too dramatic." Luann rolled her eyes at them. "Let 'em scream and yell, makes them feel manly."

"Says the woman who doesn't have to face her Old Man." Madeline grumbled. She still couldn't remember exactly what they'd done the night before but she was pretty sure that she was going to go down by association for the tattoo and lady of the night make over. She shifted in the seat and hissed. "Why does my ass hurt?" She demanded to the other women.

Luann let out a loud cackle. "Don't you remember falling on your ass when you tried to show us just how well you could work the stripper pole at Diosa? It's okay if you don't, I've got the video."

Madeline sank back in the seat with a groan. "Tell the driver to just keep on going. I'm sure we can all start a nice new life in Mexico somewhere with a little effort."

Gemma smirked. "Ain't no where on Earth far enough for any of you to run," she advised as the party bus came to a stop. "Time to face the music."

The two older women strode off of the bus with all the confidence in the word, even as Jax stormed over to Gemma with a look that would have sent grown men running away from him. "You said you were going to Nero's place, not Diosa!"

"Diosa is Nero's place." She pointed out as she lit a cigarette. "Why is no one working? Do you realize the backlog that we're going to have?"

"Fuck the backlog." Jax looked over as Tara walked slowly off of the bus, her steps unsure in the high boots. "Jesus Christ."

Madeline kept her eyes on the ground and walked over to where Happy stood. "Is this the part where I get my ass kicked?"

He reached out and lifted up her chin so that her eyes met his. "What do you think?" He didn't wait for her to answer. "Get your shit, we're going."

"Okay," she replied and looked over to where Tara was getting chewed out by Jax. Lyla was getting the stony silent treatment from Opie as she talked a mile a minute trying to explain the night before. Gemma and Luann overlooked the whole scene with barely concealed amusement.

Madeline got on the bike behind him, locked her arms around him and rested her head against the back of his cut. If he was going to give her hell, she could only hope that he would do so at a low volume so that her head wouldn't explode.

They came to a stop at a light and Happy ran his hand over her thigh. "You alright back there?" He asked over the roar of the engine.

"Yes." Madeline tightened her grip around his waist and wished that the ride could take longer and not just because she loved being on the back of his bike. She wanted to avoid, at all costs, whatever he had in store for her. The only thing she could be confident of was that he wouldn't hit her.

When they finally pulled into the driveway she got off the bike and winced. Apparently riding had irritated the bruise on her ass. "What's the matter with you?"

"I fell," she told him without elaborating as to how she'd fallen.

"You fell?" he repeated. "Who the fuck keeps calling me?" Happy pulled the phone from his pocket, it had been vibrating on and off since they'd got on the bike at the lot. "The fuck is Luann sending me a video for?"

"Oh sweet Jesus." Madeline sighed. "Can I explain before you watch it?"

"Explain what?" he demanded. "Madeline?" Happy watched her go stiff, he very rarely called her by her full name. Anger rose inside of him when she didn't answer so he opened the video.

It was obvious that Madeline was plastered, hell she could barely walk straight but that wasn't stopping her as she kicked off her heels and grabbed onto a shiny metal pole. "I can do this pole dancing shit, none of those little stripper sluts at the bachelor party have anything on me." She declared defiantly to the camera.

"That's right Girl, you tell 'em!" Tara cheered her on from the background where she was being laced into a pair of sky high knee boots. "Show them what you've got!"

Madeline grabbed the pole and spun, the move was more graceful than it should have been with how drunk she was but before she could make it around a second time she seemed to just let go. She hit the floor with a thud that made Happy wince just watching. "Ouch, my ass."

"Get up!" Luann called out from behind the camera. "Shake that shit!"

Happy glanced between his phone and Madeline as her image on the screen got back up to give a second attempt at dancing seductively. That ended when she lurched to the side of the small stage and began to puke.

"I'm sorry." Madeline told him as he closed the phone. "I was drunk and it seemed like a good idea I guess, I don't know. I can't even remember! I didn't know what I did until I mentioned my ass hurting and Luann told me about the video."

"Go in the house." It took all of Happy's effort to not burst out laughing at the look of pure panic on her face. "Right now." He added with a growl.

"We need to talk about this like adults."

"I'm telling you as your Old Man that you better get your ass in the house before the neighbors get a free fucking show. Go!"

The front door of the house opened. "Jesus Christ, could hear you screaming all the way upstairs." Destroyer spoke from the door. "Glad that your back Brother, we need to talk."

"How is she?"

"Not good." The man told him. "Come on, before the neighbors call the cops."

Madeline followed Happy into the house, watched as he exchanged an one armed hug with the large man who reminded her of Opie a little as far as size and build. "What's going on?"

"Her stats are dropping. If I was a doctor, I'd recommend hospice." Destroyer told him. "She doesn't have much time left, probably best if you stick close to home."

"We're getting married on Friday." Madeline told the man. "She really wants to be there."

"I know she does. I've hooked her up with as much medicine as I could to try and make that happen but it doesn't look good." Before the man even finished the sentence Happy was halfway down the hall. "I'm sorry Sweetheart."

"Thanks." Madeline watched Happy enter Eve's room. She wanted to give him a few minutes. "Thank you for watching her, it means a lot to both of us."

"My pleasure, she's a great woman." Destroyer gave her a small smile. "I'm gonna go outside, grab a smoke. Let me know if she needs anything."

Happy stood over his mother's bed and felt like the worlds biggest piece of shit. He could see the difference in her from just yesterday. "Ma," he spoke softly. "It's me."

A small smile spread across her lips and her eyes opened. "Hi Happy."

"Destroyer said you're feeling bad." He moved to sit at the edge of the bed. "Tell me what I can do."

"There's not a damn thing anyone can do Happy, we both know it." She reached out and took his hand. "I really wanted to see you and Madeline get married."

"You will." Happy promised as he dug into the pocket of his cut. They already had the marriage license so what was the point in waiting. "Gonna call Chibs, he's ordained. He can marry us right here in this room."

"You need to give that girl a wedding Happy, a real one; not something done at my bedside."

"She wants to marry me Ma, doesn't really give a fuck when or where."

"Gemma's going to kill you."

"I can handle Gemma." He found the number he was looking for, dialed and waited. "Hey Pres, I need a favor."


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING that you recognize. Maddy and Lia are mine.

A/N: Here's another installment. Again thank you all for the reviews, favorites and follows. They make me smile like you wouldn't believe.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Madeline pulled on the wedding dress that she'd brought in Lodi and stared at her reflection in the mirror. It had been only an hour since they got home but Chibs was already there, sitting with Eve while she and Happy dressed.

The entire club had come with him. Juice had stopped and picked up Lia on the way. "You need a hand?" her friend questioned from where she sat on the bed.

"I'm getting married in the living room. Is the dress too much?" The original plan had been to get married in the guest room but Eve had insisted that she could at least make it to the living room because there was no way that everyone could fit into the bedroom comfortably.

The fact that they were having the wedding seemed to give the woman more strength so Madeline wasn't going to insist that she stay in bed. Happy would help her to the living room and they'd make sure that she got back to bed before she got too tired out.

"Nah," Lia shook her head and adjusted the dress that she was wearing. It wasn't the original champagne colored dress that Madeline had picked out for Lia, Tara and Lyla, instead it was an old dress she'd dug out of her closet at the short notice they'd been given. "It's perfect. You look amazing."

"Thanks," Madeline fiddled with the dress just a little more and sat down to start on her hair and makeup. Neither were her strong suit and she felt her nerves begin to climb a little higher in her stomach.

She was saved by a knock on the door. Tara, Lyla, Gemma and Luann had arrived and between them they had enough cosmetics and hair supplies to run a small salon. All Madeline had to do was sit there and take it as Gemma started on her hair and Luann began to work on her face. Lyla had a frilly blue and white garter for her to wear and Tara's contribution was a pair of cascading diamond and emerald earrings she explained were from her grandmother. "So you'll have something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue." The doctor explained. "And I know that right now you're not thinking honeymoon but whenever you want it, Piney's cabin is yours."

"Technically it's the clubs cabin but if possession is nine tenths of the law, it's definitely Piney's." Gemma stabbed another hair pin into the updo that she was creating. "And just so you know I haven't canceled shit for Friday, we can skip the ceremony and just have the after party. Got a lot of out of town Brothers coming in, can't not deliver when we promised a party."

"Let's play it by ear." Madeline winced as another pin dug into her scalp. "Right now our biggest concern is spending as much time as possible with Eve."

"I know Baby." Gemma said in a soothing tone. "Stopped in to see her, she's real excited that you're doing this but also just a little worried that you're going to be pissed at her for not having the actual ceremony."

"This is going to be an actual ceremony. It's going to be beautiful." Madeline might have had her doubts about how romantic or memorable her wedding was truly going to be but she'd cheerfully cut out her own tongue before admitting that to Gemma or anyone else.

"You're beautiful." Luann told her. The woman obviously understood brides needed to be flattered on their wedding day. "I married Otto on top of a funeral home."

"What?" Tara nearly choked on air.

"That's where the mayor lived in Lodi at the time," the bottled blonde shrugged her shoulders. "I didn't care where we were, neither did he. It's not about where you are or what you're wearing, it's about committing to the man that you love," she smiled softly. "And your love story is going to be an epic one Darling, you just wait and see."

"Maybe you could get Happy to redo the vows on Friday at the reservation." Gemma suggested.

"Yeah, I don't see that happening." Madeline smirked. "But hey, maybe someone else can get married like a certain couple who can't seem to keep their hands off of one another," she shot a meaningful look at Lia.

"Me?" Lia squeaked out the word. "Oh no, we are no where near that point."

"I heard Juice almost took the new prospects head off for staring at your ass." Gemma spoke bluntly as she sprayed what felt like an entire can of hair spray on Madeline's hair. "That pretty much means you're an Old Lady now."

"Juice and I are... we're not..." Lia gave up trying to explain what they were or weren't as her face flamed bright red. "Shit, we forgot a bouquet. I can run to the florist."

"I don't need one." Madeline interjected. "It's fine."

"Like hell it is." Tara shook her head. "Lia, go and do that. Get whatever you can, something is better than nothing."

"Or someone could just go down to Maddy's garden." Luann suggested. "Grab some flowers and we'll make them look pretty. I like that actually, it's kind of sweet."

"You're turning into a god damn sap in your old age." Gemma told her long time friend without any real heat in her voice. "Someone get the flowers before she starts weeping."

"I'll do it." Lia hurried from the room before the conversation could switch back to her budding relationship with Juice.

13 13 13 13 13

"You shouldn't have gone to all this trouble Happy." Eve scolded him mildly but she was smiling as he helped her out of bed. "But I'm glad that you did, it means the world to me that the two of you would do this..." her voice cracked.

"Of course we would Ma. You sure that you don't want the wheel chair?" He wasn't sure where it had come from.

"No." Eve shook her head. "I have something to say to you."

"What's up?"

"You take care of her when I'm gone, she's going to need it." They both knew that she was referring to Madeline. "And you let her take care of you. You talk to her. You tell her what you're feeling, just like you'd tell me."

"Yeah Ma."

"Don't yeah ma me," Eve's eyes flashed with anger. "I know you Boy, you're going to close yourself off from her, from everyone and go back to the man that you used to be."

"I'm the same man I always have been Ma."

"No you're not. You're different now, different because of her. You finally let yourself feel something even though it scared you."

"What are you talking about? Nothing scares me." Happy told her. "Think you took too many of your meds today Ma. Come on, let's get you into the living room."

Eve sighed, her son had always been hardheaded and she'd known that saying anything to him would make him defensive but it needed to be said. "So you aren't scared of me dying?"

"Nah." He cracked a small smile. "You're a real pain in my ass sometimes." His face grew serious. "Ain't the time to talk about losing you Ma, got to get married in like twenty minutes." As he said the words it hit him, he was getting married in twenty minutes. Everything was in place, people were waiting to watch. If he had any reason to back out now would be the last chance to run.

"And that suddenly just scared the shit out of you? Didn't it?" With an all knowing smile Eve reached up to stroke the side of her son's face. "You are doing the right thing. Madeline is the one for you. She loves you. You love her."

"I really do Ma. I swear, I do."

"Good Boy, make sure that you keep her Happy. Don't let anything that happens tear you apart because the two of you need each other."

"I won't."

Eve wanted to believe him, she truly did but she knew that once she passed no matter what anyone said he'd deal with it in his own way. It was likely to be dark and bloody. She could only hope that the love he and Madeline shared would be strong enough to pull him back. "I love you Happy, I've always loved you."

"I love you too Ma." He said gruffly.

13 13 13

"Breathe." Lia poked Maddy in the side as they stood at her bedroom door, ready to go out and walk to the living room for the wedding.

"Oh fuck, I don't think I can." Madeline had never felt so nervous or anxious before in her life. She couldn't stop thinking, couldn't turn off her brain. She just kept flashing back to meeting Happy, being pinned against her hotel wall by him and remembering how scared and aroused she'd been. It hadn't been long after that when she'd started to fall for him. Now he was going to be hers for the rest of their lives.

"Of course you can, you love him and he loves you. Now suck it up because in like ten minutes you're going to be Mrs. Lowman." Lia shoved the bouquet of flowers into Madeline's hands. "Now smile, you don't want to look like you're getting a mug shot taken during your wedding photos."

"There isn't a photographer Lia."

"Like hell there isn't, Juice has the video camera and Phil has the still camera." A smile curved her lips, she had to hand it to the ladies of Samcro they'd pulled together and managed to make the no notice wedding an actual wedding. She knew that Madeline was going to be pleasantly surprised when she saw the transformation that had happened to her living room.

"Okay. I'm okay. You can head out there now. I'll be right behind you, I swear." Madeline smiled widely at her friend. "I'm sorry we couldn't do the whole actual bridesmaid thing Lia."

"Don't be sorry, this is perfect." Lia pressed a kiss to her friends cheek, suddenly overcome with emotion. "I'll see you out there."

Madeline watched her go, shut her eyes and waited for her cue to come out once everyone else was seated. She still wasn't sure how so many people had fit into her living room but she was glad that they were all there.

"You ready?" Jax came to the door. "Wow Maddy, you look amazing."

"Thanks Jax. I'm ready."

He offered her his arm. "Let's go."

"I thought that I was walking out by myself."

"Hap wants to make sure you don't run the other way." He teased. "And we all figured that you might want someone to walk you down the aisle."

"And you got the short end of the stick?" She questioned.

"Darling, it's my pleasure." He assured her. "If it's okay with you."

"Thanks Jax, I appreciate it." She slipped her arm through his. If she had any doubts about how Samcro felt about her marrying Happy the fact that Jax was offering to walk her down the hall to the living room alleviated it. She didn't realize how much worry she'd had about that until the sweet feeling of relief she was currently experiencing.

Nerves still ran through her but they were no where near as bad as she'd expected. Jax led her down the hall at a slow pace and when they entered the living room she gasped. There were candles everywhere, flickering softly. Her furniture had been moved to create room for everyone. Eve sat in a comfortable recliner chair wearing a dress that Madeline remembered seeing in her closet.

Everyone was smiling. Even Happy as he stood in front of Chibs near the front windows. Jax walked her over to him, nodded at his brother and then took his seat.

Chibs cleared his throat. "We come together here today to celebrate love, to celebrate life and watch these two lovely people be joined together for all of eternity in the eyes of the law. We all know that they're already joined, that crow certainly speaks for itself." The comment drew laughter from everyone. "We all knew that there was something different about Madeline the moment that Happy brought her around."

"She didn't have any plastic parts!" Tig called out from his seat and then went quiet as Happy twisted his head to glare at him.

"I knew the first time that I saw them together that we would end up here, watching them pledge their love to one another in front of who matters most, their family," Chibs smiled at them. "Happy, do you take this woman to be your wife? To have and hold, in sickness and in health until death do you part?"

"I do." Happy said stoically, no hint of his emotions obvious in his voice. Chib's looked at him expectantly. "I promise to treat her as good as my leather and ride her as much as my Harley."

Laughter and cheers erupted as Madeline felt her face flush bright red. Happy grabbed her hand and she was surprised when he slid a thin band on her finger, it fit perfectly against her engagement ring and she realized, much to her horror, that the wedding band she'd picked out for him was still at the jewelers on Main Street.

"Madeline," Chibs looked over to her. "Do you take Happy to be your husband? To honor and obey him above all else?"

"I do." Her voice cracked. "The ring, I forgot the ring." A hand poked her and she looked over to see Luann standing there. The woman pressed a ring into her hand. "Oh shit, thank you." She let out a nearly hysterical laugh and her hands shook as she slid the ring onto Happy's finger.

"Cursing during the wedding ceremony." He shook his head. "The fuck am I going to do with you?"

"I can give you some pointers if you can't figure it out." Kozik piped up from his seat in the back.

"Bunch of bloody heathens." Chibs shook his head but he couldn't stop smiling. "And now by the power vested in me, I pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Madeline went into Happy's arms without hesitation. His mouth covered hers in a kiss that surprised her due to the intensity. It wasn't as if he'd never kissed her in front of others but he usually held back, kept it short and simple but this was nothing like that. Her arms wrapped around him and they only broke apart when the whistles and cheers grew loud enough to actually reach their ears.

"Got to get Ma up to bed." Happy looked over to where Eve was all but falling asleep on the chair. His words were spoken low and only Madeline heard him. He pulled her closer. "Sorry we aren't having a honeymoon or whatever."

"I only need you Hap," she told him. "I'll help you with Ma."

13 13 13

Madeline slipped out of Eve's room to give Happy a moment alone with her. The woman had fallen asleep immediately despite the noise raging from the living room. Someone had brought out two bottles of Irish Whiskey and now everyone was pretty much three sheets to the wind. There would be a lot of people sleeping on the couches and floors but she couldn't mind.

Finally she had a family, they might not have been blood but they were hers and she was going to keep them forever. "Hey." Happy closed the door to the room behind him. "You want to go back in there?"

"Nope." She caught the look in his eye and smirked. "I want to go to our bedroom and let my husband fuck me into a coma."

Happy found it weird to be called a husband, it was a role that he never expected to have. "Your husband is a lucky man."

"I'm a lucky woman."

"You're beautiful." Happy told her because he knew that he didn't speak the words often enough. "I love you."

Madeline's smile could have lit all of Charming. "I love you."

"Time to prove that Girl." He growled playfully and reached out to pick her up. He wasted no time carrying her down the hall to their bedroom. He made sure that the door was locked, not wanting to take the chance that anyone would decide to walk in. He didn't think his brothers were that stupid but with the amount of whiskey they'd all had, all bets were off.

"I need some help with this zipper."

"Oh, I've got the zipper." In fact it took all of his self control not to just rip the dress from her body but he knew her, knew that she'd want to keep it. Happy took his time taking off his cut leaving just a white button down shirt beneath. It was as close to a suit as he could ever come. "C'mere."

Madeline approached him. "Right here?" she asked as she innocently batted her eyes knowing that she was just out of his reach.

"Closer." He crooked a finger at her. She moved slowly and his eyes followed the movements of her hips beneath the sleek white dress. He'd never seen her look better and as his eyes caught sight of the rings on her finger he felt himself grow impossibly hard.

She was his, all his and not just in the eyes of his brothers now, the ring on her finger said it to the world. "Close enough?" Madeline asked as she stopped only a few inches away from him.

"Yeah, that'll work." Happy reached out and ran his hands down her arms. He felt her shiver and smirked, if he had his way then she was going to do more than shiver tonight. He took his time and let his hands glide over her waist, across her stomach and up her back.

"Mmm." Madeline moaned as his mouth found the side of her neck. His lips peppered her skin with soft kisses but it was the stinging bite that he placed right on the spot where her neck and shoulder met that made her cry out.

Happy didn't bother to tell her to be quiet, he didn't give a fuck who heard him with his wife. As gently as he could he unzipped the dress and lowered it down her body. Beneath the pristine white dress he hadn't expected to find a pair of low riding bikini style underwear and no bra but the biggest surprise was the thigh high stockings held up by a silky blue garter. "Lyla." She explained as his fingers moved over the material.

He'd have to be nicer to the little blonde because Madeline in those creamy white panties, stockings and garter had him as hard as he'd ever been in his life. He went down on his knees in front of her, his tongue tracing a trail down her stomach. She whimpered and let her hands run over his head. The moment that he pulled the panties off of her hips he caught a whiff of the scent that was only hers. The scent that intoxicated him and drove him to the edge every single time.

She was wet for him. Fuck, she was always wet for him. There had never been a time when he'd approached her that she'd turned him away, he knew that there never would be. Happy eased her legs open and shot her a wicked grin before he spread her open with his fingers and began to use his tongue.

Madeline stumbled as pleasure spiked through her. She let out a loud wail but quickly clamped her mouth shut to keep from putting on a show for everyone who was still celebrating the wedding just down the hall.

Happy looked up, saw her biting down on her lip. "Quit that shit." His voice was a growl as he pulled his mouth away from her. "I want to hear you."

His mouth returned to her with a vengeance. Madeline let the cries she'd been swallowing pour from her throat as her hips began to jerk against him. She struggled to find a grip on his freshly shaved head but wasn't able to especially when the orgasm crashed over her. "Fuck." She cried out the word and nearly fell but his strong hands snaked around her waist to hold her up.

His mouth claimed hers and she tasted herself on his lips as he moved her towards the bed, towards their bed. "Hap?"

"Yeah Baby?" He watched her eyes light up at the use of the nickname.

"I love you."

"I love you too." Happy lowered her to the bed gently and pushed her legs open so that he could settle between them.

"Do you want me to..." she raised an eyebrow suggestively at him.

"Later," he decided after a little thought. "Got something else in mind for right now," he pushed against her and when he slid inside of her she screamed his name, her nails dug deep into his back.

They moved together, slowly at first but then the movements became more frantic as they couldn't get enough of one another. Happy felt her body clench tightly around him once, twice and the third time he was unable to push the thought of her hot willing body from his mind so he joined her in release.

Together they collapsed in a tangle of limbs and attempted to catch their breath. Madeline nuzzled her face against his chest. "This was the best day of my life."

"Mine too," he assured her with a kiss to her temple as he shifted off of her. "Better not fall asleep on me Wife, I've got big plans for you."

"Mmm," Madeline sighed softly and shifted so she could curl her leg over his. "I like the sound of that."


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Doing this for fun. No profit made just people (hopefully) entertained.

A/N: There's a little bit of jumping around in this chapter, a lot of stuff happens. Things are about to take a turn for Madeline and Happy. Will they come out stronger or not make it through at all?

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

She was married. Madeline stared down at the ring on her finger for a long time before she got out of bed. There was a persistent and pretty painful ache between her legs but she wasn't going to complain. Over and over again they'd consummated the marriage and hadn't managed to get a lot of sleep, that was why she was extra careful to slip from the bed without waking him.

Madeline put on her robe and headed out of the bedroom to see what devastation had happened to the house the night before and to check on Eve. She made her new mother-in-law the first stop. "Ma?" She rapped her knuckles on the door and was surprised when Tara opened it. "Tara?"

"Hey, I was just about to come and wake you guys."

"What's wrong?" All the joy that she'd had inside of her fled and was replaced by fear. "Tara?"

"Destroyer had me come in last night when her stats started dropping," the woman explained. "I managed to get her comfortable and she woke up and threatened me if I interrupted your wedding night." A sad smile crossed her face, "I think that she's hoping you made her a grandchild last night."

"How much time does she have Tara?" Madeline ignored the grandchild comment.

"No one knows that Maddy but if I had to guess, I'd say that it'll be soon."

"I need to wake Happy up." Tears clung to Madeline's lashes as she darted out of the room. She ran down the hall to the bedroom and the door opened before she could get inside. "Hap."

Happy took one look at her expression and knew that something was wrong, knew that there was only one reason that she'd have that look on her face just minutes after she'd slipped out of their bed with a wide smile. "Is she dead?" His voice sounded strange to his ears.

"No but Tara's with her, she doesn't think that there's much time left. I am so sorry Happy." Madeline moved forward and wrapped her arms around him. "I'm so sorry."

He held her against him for a moment. "Not your fault," he said finally. "Don't look at me like that Mad."

"Like what?" She questioned.

"Like you fucking pity me," he replied. "Gonna go and see her."

Madeline exhaled as he walked past her. She'd known that this moment was coming but there was no way to prepare for it, not twelve hours before they'd been completely wrapped up in one another happier than they'd ever been and now she could almost feel the distance starting to grow between them.

Eve's words replayed in her mind over and over like they were on a loop. No matter what happened she couldn't let him push her away. She was his. He was hers. They would get through this together.

Happy shot Tara one look as he walked in the door of his mother's room and the doctor hastily excused herself. He pulled over a chair, sat down and took a good hard look at the woman who'd raised him, given him everything and still loved him despite how fucked up he'd turned out. "Ma." His voice was deeper than normal, emotions that he wasn't comfortable feeling had his chest feeling tight. It was hard to swallow, shit it was hard to breathe.

There was no response from the woman on the bed so he reached out and took her hand. Several minutes ticked by and then he heard the door open again. "Get out." He said without looking over at the door.

The door shut and he sighed. "Fuck Ma, just get up," he told her. "Open your eyes." It was a plea, a dream that he knew wasn't going to happen. He jolted at the feeling of a hand settling on his shoulder. "I said get out."

"I'd like to stay," Madeline told him softly. She took his silence as agreement and ran her hands over his shoulders.

"She won't wake up." His voice cracked so he didn't say anything else but he brought his hand up to cover hers. "The fuck am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know," Madeline admitted, "but I do know that she'd like that you're here. She loves you Hap, loves you so much." On the last word her voice shook, Happy turned his head and saw tears flowing down her face.

"Come here." He waited for her to move to his lap and help her tight against him. "She loves you too, made her real happy to know that I found someone."

"I'm here Hap. I'm not going anywhere, ever." Madeline focused on the bed and watched Eve's chest rise and fall shallowly. "We're here Ma. We're right here." She leaned over and ran her fingers over Eve's hand.

Happy sat without saying a word as his wife continued to talk to his mother as her breathing became slower. He couldn't even be sure what she was saying but there was comfort in her voice and he could only hope that his mother felt that as well.

He'd give anything to have her around longer, would happily trade places with her. Eve had never had an easy life. She'd had shitty parents, left home as a teen only to end up pregnant by his loser father who took off when things got tough. After that she'd had her hands full with him. Just the thought of the shit that he'd put her through shamed him and it hadn't just been a rough teenage phase. She had to have been disappointed when he started to prospect with the Sons but she'd never said a word against it. All his life she'd let him make his own decisions and stood by him no matter what the outcome. Now all he could do was sit here and wait for her life to end.

At least she had gotten to see the wedding, it had been in some ways more important to her than him. Honestly, if she hadn't given him the ring and a little bit of subtle pressure about making the union legal he would have been content to let things go on as they were. He didn't need the ring or marriage license because he knew that Madeline was his.

"You want to take a break? Get some air?" Madeline looked over to him, her eyes wet with tears once again.

"Nah, you can if you need to." He ran his hand over her back.

"I'm good. I don't want to leave her or you." She sniffled and buried her face against his neck as he drew her closer.

Hours passed and they remained there. Tara came back in from time to time to check Eve's breathing and to make sure she was comfortable but aside from that she didn't interfere with the vigil that the two were keeping.

They were both surprised when Eve's eyes fluttered open. "Happy?" Her voice was weak but her words were clear. "Maddy?"

"Right here Ma. Right here." Maddy shifted off of Happy's lap so he could reach his mother easier.

"Heard you... such a good girl." Eve's eyes focused on them and she smiled softly. "I'm ready for this. I'm tired of hurting. Come closer Happy, sit with me."

"I can leave you two alone if..."

"No." Eve shook her head. "I want my family with me, my son and my beautiful daughter." Happy moved to sit on the edge of the bed and Madeline went to the other side. "I love you both, I love you both very much."

"Love you too Ma." Happy took her hand and held it gently. He was sure that he was going to hurt her but she just continued to smile.

"Me too Ma." Madeline began to sob softly.

"Shh." Eve reached out and patted her leg. "It's all going to be okay." Her eyes fluttered closed again, one hand remained on Madeline's leg and Happy took the other.

They sat there, together, for a long time until Eve's chest no longer rose and fell. Happy noticed it first. "Ma." He shook her arm, harder than he would have dared if he didn't know that she was gone. He'd seen death before, too many times.

"Oh God." Madeline reached up and smoothed Eve's hair down. "Hap?" Her voice shook with restrained emotion and he knew that she was going to start crying.

"Go get Tara." There was nothing that the doctor could do and as much as he hated to admit it even to himself he wanted to spend just a minute alone with his mother. Once the door shut he lowered his head to the bed and allowed the tears that were burning his eyes to finally fall.

He couldn't remember the last time he cried but it had to be when he was a kid, getting hurt on the playground or some shit like that. He knew what his mother had done though, knew that she'd have comforted him, held him and told him that she loved him. "I love you Ma, I fucking love you."

14 14 14

Happy hadn't said a word in hours. Tara had come into the room and checked Eve's vitals. She'd confirmed what they knew and left to make arrangements for the body. He hadn't wanted to think of his mother as a body even though he could already feel the way that her skin was cooling down. Soon she would be completely cold to the touch, her muscles would harden and then they'd stick her in a box and sink her in the ground.

There mere thought of it sent him into a rage, so much so that when Skeeter and the other guy from the funeral home had showed up he'd lunged at them. It had taken Opie, Jax and Tig to pull him back. All of his Brothers had shown up and they were all still there, he could hear their voices through the walls of the guest room but he'd just gone back and sat in the chair. The chair that he'd been in when his mother died. He didn't know where Madeline was and that pissed him off.

She was his fucking Old Lady, his wife! Her place was at his side. The anger grew and grew inside of him until he couldn't take it one second longer. He got to his feet and stalked into the living room. She wasn't there.

"Yo Hap, I'm so fucking sorry Man." Juice rose to his feet and tried to approach him but stopped at the glaring look sent his way.

"Leave him be Juicy." Chibs spoke softly, sadly. "Anything we can do Brother, we're here."

Happy could only nod. He left the living room and found the women in the kitchen, well most of the women. Madeline wasn't there. She wasn't in the backyard either. He checked their bedroom last and found her sitting on the bed just staring at the wall.

"Hap." Her voice cracked and she shot to her feet. Before he could react she was on him, her arms around him tightly. "Tell me what to do."

He didn't answer, couldn't answer. What she could do? What the fuck did she think that she could do? She couldn't bring Eve back. He knew that his anger was misdirected but it was so all consuming that he couldn't stop it. It had taken over him.

Madeline let out a squeak of surprise as he grabbed her chin roughly and tilted her head back. His mouth crashed down on hers and there was nothing soft or sweet about it. She realized he wasn't being driven by love or even grief, it was anger that fueled him. His hands dug into her skin and she hissed. "Hap."

He ignored her soft plea and grabbed for the waist of her pajama pants as he walked her backwards towards the bed. Roughly he pushed her down and covered her body with his. "Hap!" Madeline felt her heart race hard as he grabbed her hands and pinned them to the bed.

Again he took her mouth, roughly shoved his tongue in before he bit down hard on her bottom lip. His hips moved against her, the rough denim of the jeans he'd pulled on against her soft warmth. He gripped her hands tighter and began to thrust harder against her.

"Happy. Baby. Please." Madeline struggled against his grip. "Baby, please." She went still and stiff beneath him and he responded with a growl. When he released her arms to relieve himself of his jeans she immediately brought her hands to his chest. "Hap?"

He saw her through the haze of his anger, her eyes wide and not with arousal but fear. It gave him a moment of pause as he continued to stare down at him. "I love you Hap." Madeline whispered the words and brought her hand up to cup his face. "Please, talk to me."

His eyes were as dark as she'd ever seen them, the look in them sent a chill down her spine. She'd expected anger, had actually anticipated that he would trash the house or punch holes in the walls; do something to physically release what he was feeling. His hand moved down to her hip and he tapped her hard, almost a hit. It was a familiar unspoken signal, one that he often did when they were intimate.

It meant that he wanted her on her knees, so that he could take her from behind. For a moment she didn't move but then she sat up so that she could press her lips to his. She didn't understand this as part of the grieving process but it was his grief to deal with. If a round of rough sex was going to help him deal better, she wasn't going to complain. "I love you." She wasn't sure if the words registered with him as she shifted to get on her knees in front of him.

She cried out when he entered her without warning, hard and fast. One of this hands was at her hip with a grip strong enough to make her squirm, the other was on her shoulder and held on just as tightly. Each stroke brought him deeper and deeper inside of her and unlike every other time they'd been together he showed no concern for her comfort.

This wasn't sex or making love, it was something primal. It was anger not love that fueled his strokes and as Madeline held on to the bed to keep from falling face forward she felt a brief moment of fear. It passed quickly because no matter what was happening, he loved her and she trusted him. Her body quickly grew used to his pace and she began to work her hips against his.

Once they were moving together there was no stopping the orgasm that built deep inside of her. The fear she'd felt, the anger that he was feeling just seemed to heighten everything and when she finally felt her stomach coil it was the most intense feeling that she'd had in a long time.

Madeline collapsed forward, unable to hold her weight any longer, as he continued to pound in and out of her relentlessly. His release came along with a strangled moan as he slammed his length into her several more times.

The only sound in the room was their breathing as Happy slid out of her and laid back on the bed. Madeline moved to his side and rested her head against his chest. He reached out and ran his hand down her side. His anger had faded, it was still somewhere beneath the surface but the hold over him was no longer complete. He looked over when she whimpered that was when he saw the marks that were already forming on her hips; angry red welts that were in the exact shape of his fingers. He sat straight up and got off of the bed. His eyes moved over her body, saw that her shoulder was also red. Fuck, he'd hurt her. He couldn't even remember grabbing her in either place. He really didn't even remember how they'd ended up on the bed.

He could only recall grabbing her chin and kissing her, the way that she'd given herself over to him completely as she always did. He grabbed for his jeans and shoved his feet back into his boots. What had he fucking done?

"Hap? Where are you going?" Madeline scrambled for her pants as he slipped his jeans back up and zipped them. "Hap."

Happy reached out and grabbed the pants from her hand. He pulled her to her feet and saw confusion on her face. He stared at the bruises, the proof that he'd hurt her and he knew that wasn't the only way he'd hurt her. Her body had been too resistant when he pushed inside of her.

Fresh pain surged through him as he dropped to his knees in front of her. His mother would be ashamed of him, hurting the woman that he loved. "I'm sorry." He said the words so low that she wasn't sure she'd heard him right but became sure as he pressed his lips tenderly to her hip bone. She drew in a quick breath as his hand moved between her legs. "Fuck." He all but roared the word as he felt how swollen she was in her most sensitive spot.

"Hap, I'm fine."

"I'm sorry." He repeated with one last kiss as he rose to his feet.

"Hap, I'm fine." Madeline repeated. "Where are you going?"

He didn't answer, instead he opened the door and walked out of it. He'd hurt her. He'd hurt his girl and she'd stood there and told him that she was fine. The anger returned but this time it was directed inward.

**14 14 14 **

"Madeline?" Tara spoke from the front door and looked at the woman where she was sitting on the top step of the porch. She'd been there since Happy had stormed out an hour earlier. "Honey, you need to come inside."

"He left." Madeline spoke for the first time and looked over at Tara. "He left." She repeated.

"He probably just needed to cool down." Tara came and stood over her. "You've just got to give him some time."

"She's right." Gemma stepped out on the porch followed by Luann and Lia. "Sometimes you've just got to give them a little space. He'll go for a ride, clear his head and then he'll be back. You need to get up and get dressed, got a lot of plans to make for Eve's service. I was thinking..."

"No." Madeline shook her head. "I know what she wanted, she told me." Eve had been a simple woman and she'd wanted to be remembered in a simple way. A nice service and then being cremated and having her ashes scattered near her favorite place, a small wooded area in Bakersfield with a lake where she'd taken Happy often as a child.

"Alright," Gemma said evenly as she held her hands up.

"I'll be inside in a minute," Madeline looked away from them all and back at the street. All she wanted to see was Happy turning the corner on his bike, coming back to her. Eventually the women went back inside and she continued to sit there and wait.

14 14 14

Happy got on his bike and just rode. He had no destination in mind only the open road. He could still feel the anger inside of him at himself and at the world because his mother was gone. For years she'd been all that he had. Now he had Madeline, or he used to have Madeline, how could she stay with him when he'd hurt her? And after he'd done so she just stood there and told him that she was fine.

It wasn't fine, not by a long shot. She deserved better than a man who could easily hurt her without even realizing it. He should just keep on fucking riding, head away from Charming because it wasn't a mistake to love Madeline, but it had been a mistake to think that he could be with her and not get her hurt.

He was so lost in his own shit that he didn't notice the other motorcycle when he blew past it but it certainly did catch his attention when it switched lanes to ride behind him. Too late he realized that he'd ventured into territory that didn't belong to the Sons.

The bike behind him bore an insignia that was burned in his brain. It had been spray painted all over the walls of that fucking house! With a roar that he heard even over the engine Happy switched lanes and willed the other bike to follow him.

14 14 14

Hours later Madeline was still on the porch. She didn't want to think about the fact that her ass was asleep or that the temperature was dropping like a stone. She just continued to sit and stare, her mind never stopped thinking. Eventually she'd have to get up, to plan Eve's service and before even that to deal with the people still inside of her house. She loved all of them but she wished that they would just go the hell away and that Happy would come back.

"Hey Doll." Tig spoke from behind her. "Whatcha doing? Shit, it's freezing out here." She felt the warmth of something being draped over her shoulders. "Got them all freaking out in there."

"Why?" She looked over to see he'd draped a sweatshirt over her shoulders. "Thanks."

"You're just sitting out here staring at the street, ain't eaten nothing or drank anything. Hell, you haven't said shit."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Nine glorious inches," he replied with a lewd grin. "Oh, not that?"

"Asshole," Madeline informed him but a smile spread across her lips. "Thanks for that mental image by the way."

"Anytime," Tig grinned back at her. "Go on, ask away."

"Do you think that he loves me enough to stay?"

"Yes." Kozik answered as he came out on the porch.

"She wasn't talking to you." Tig snarled at the other man.

"Was your answer going to be different?" Kozik questioned. "Didn't think so," he leaned against the porch railing. "I've known Hap a long time Madeline, haven't ever seen him the way he is with you. I know Gemma told you to leave him alone, let him be but that's bullshit. She knows a lot but she doesn't know everything. You need to stay on him, don't let him forget what he's got to come home to."

Tig sighed loudly. "As much as I hate to agree with blondie, he's right."

"I need to find him." Madeline looked between the two men.

"We'll find him Doll. Don't you worry." Tig looked over at Kozik and his nemesis nodded, they were on the same page.

14 14 14

Many would have called going up against four men suicide but Happy simply thought of it as a nice way to release some of the anger inside of him. He was out manned, out gunned and not wearing a vest but those were the cards he had to play with so he did what he could to give himself an advantage.

All of his years riding Nomad meant he knew these particular freeways like the back of his hand so when he'd seen the sign for Gordan's Pass, he'd taken the exit and his prey followed just like he'd expected.

The winding roads were a challenge on a bike and made more so by the traffic coming in the other direction. One of the riders behind him went off the road after a close call with a mini van. Happy could only laugh and he gunned the bike harder. There was no maybe about it, he was being reckless and he didn't give a fuck.

Happy's mind raced as he tried to remember the area better. A maniacal smile crossed his face as he recalled the last time that he'd been here, it had been with Quinn and they'd needed to deal with a low level drug dealer who'd gotten too big for his britches. The man had never made the trip back down.

He took a turn fast and watched a second biker go down hard. There was no way in hell that the man was going to get up from a spill like that. The other two riders were still hot on his ass though. That wasn't a problem, unless things had changed majorly there was some sort of utility building up ahead, it was as good a place as any to bring this shit to a close.

The two remaining men hung back the instant that he pulled behind the building. Happy had been counting on that, with the building for cover he had this in the fucking bag. The two men were hunkered down behind their bikes and taking stupid shots. It was a mistake because they sure didn't have unlimited ammunition.

Happy decided that they'd wasted just about all they had, he stepped out from the cover of the building and started to fire. His shots hit where he wanted them to but he felt the familiar burn of a graze against the side of his head. Shit, that had been close too close. It was time to finish this.

He killed one of the men outright, no second thought about it. When he turned to the other he could feel the smile on his lips and the man on the ground knew he was in trouble from more than his shattered knee.

"The fuck?" Happy stopped dead in his tracks as he recognized the man. "Seriously?" Pissed he moved forward and kicked him hard in the ribs several times until the man spit up blood. "Start talking cock sucker and tell me what you know I want to hear."

It took time and persuasion for the man to finally speak, long enough that Happy started to wonder if he'd lost his touch. Of course he'd tried a little harder then, who'd have thought that Kyle was so attached to his fingers? "Talk." He growled the word, hoped that the man would keep his mouth shut. It had been too long since he'd done anything like this. "Why is your MC after the Sons?"

"Wouldn't believe me if I told ya'." Kyle spit out another mouthful of blood.

"Try me motherfucker." Happy slid the screw driver in his hand deeper into Kyle's stomach, "tell me."

"Lost the gavel, the club and then his Old Lady takes up with a pimp? Fuck else was he supposed to do? Can't let that shit ride, isn't our way."

Happy frowned. Dying men weren't known for lying but what he was saying was fucking insane. "Say the name," he ordered.

"Clay." The man managed a weak chuckle. "Your face is priceless right now." Being inches from death had apparently given him some balls. "Ain't gonna stop him, Charming is going to burn."


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Sons of Anarchy. I do this simply for fun, no profit is made.

A/N: I have the best readers, you guys are awesome with the reviews, favorites and follows.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Madeline loved and adored Lia and Juice but if they didn't leave her house soon she was going to kill both of them with a smile. Happy had been gone for six hours. Mostly everyone else had left hours before. "I think I'm going to go and lay down."

"You should eat something first." Lia suggested. "I can make you something."

"I'm not hungry. I'm just tired."

"Darren and Phil will stay here." Juice told her. "Standard practice Maddy," he assured her. "This damn phone doesn't stop ringing."

Madeline knew that something was wrong by Juice's expression as he held the phone to his ear. "I've got to go," he announced and turned his attention to Lia. "Change of plans, you're staying here too."

"Wait, what?"

"Not the time to argue Babe." He leaned in and kissed her forehead. "Stay here, inside. If it isn't a Son in a cut do not open it."

"Oh fuck," Madeline sighed the words. "Screw going to bed, I'm getting shit faced drunk."

15 15 15

Jax shook his head slowly, clearly he'd never even thought that he'd walk into the utility building and find Kyle Hobart hung by his wrists. Happy was sitting on a folding chair with his face unreadable as always. "What the fuck happened?" The blonde man demanded.

"We've been chatting." Happy replied and when he rose the blood on his white tee shirt was made more obvious, more gruesome. "Kyle's got an interesting story to tell about our favorite new MC."

Jax narrowed his eyes. The problem with the interloping MC was supposed to have been dealt with in that shitty house. There hadn't even been a blip on the radar. "How'd you and Kyle end up here?"

"Spotted him on the highway, drew him and his friends up here," he explained. "Couple of 'em didn't make it all the way up here. Took the other one outside, too dead to talk but Kyle made up for it." Happy stepped forward and Kyle flinched. "Quit crying and start talking."

"It was Clay." Kyle blurted out. "He's the one who got guys together for The Forsaken, the one calling all the shots. The one who knew where to hit the Sons to get under your skin. He's fucking crazy, crazy as fuck." The man began to blubber and no one could really understand what he was saying.

"You buying this shit?" The President demanded of Happy.

"Makes sense that Clay would have a grudge," Juice spoke up. "He said some things to me, things that I thought were because he was drunk."

"And you just mention it now?" Tig shook his head in disbelief. "You really are a fucking idiot, aren't you?"

"Enough." Jax wasn't in the mood for the familiar bickering between his brothers. "Fuck," he declared as he took out a cigarette. "Op?"

"I believe him." Opie's eyes were fixated on the former brother. "We all know that something has been seriously off with Clay. Hell, Gemma taking up with Nero probably sent him over the edge."

"It did," Kyle babbled, his movements becoming less energetic with each passing second. "Using the old Blackbird site for meetings; the next one is tomorrow."

Happy took a step back, as much as he wanted to kill Kyle Hobart, the final shot should belong to Opie. He deserved it for the years he paid for Kyle being a coward. It was over quickly actually, seemed that his brother couldn't wait.

"We need to find Clay." Jax stated the obvious as he looked around at his brothers. "I need Chibs and Happy with me," he left no room for argument. "Op, get everyone to the clubhouse."

"I'm on it." Opie handed his gun over to Juice. "Get rid of this for me. I'll send word once I've got them all there."

15 15 15

Tiffany looked around the clubhouse, there wasn't a Charming Son to be seen so she was working the crowd as hard as she could. A man from Tacoma kept staring at her, he was older than she'd have liked but still attractive with dark hair and eyes. She shot him a smile and sauntered across the room to the bar.

The woman pouring the drinks gave her a funny look, probably jealous because Tiffany was at least ten years younger than her with a body she'd never had. "Just give me my drink, not your attitude."

"Here you go Darling." Ima slid the drink in front of her. She was a lot of things but not stupid, when Tig Trager told her to keep an eye out for someone she kept an eye out. This little blonde tramp was going down, she just didn't fucking know it.

15 15 15

Lia was passed out on the couch with a bottle of tequila still in her hand; Madeline envied her friend for that. She'd love to sleep but she couldn't because her brain wouldn't shut off. There was no doubt in her mind that something had gone down, right now Happy was likely in battle while she sat here drinking only feet away from the room where his mother had died. There was no doubt in her mind he was where he'd rather be.

This was going to suck, she decided as she put down the bottle in her hand and moved to sit down on the couch. "I'm not so sure that I can do this," it was terrifying to speak the words out loud even though no one could hear them. And it was the truth, there was no way she was leaving Happy ever but what if she broke before then? What if it all became just too much?

A knock on the door made her jump. Carefully she walked over and looked out the window along side the door, relief flooded her at the sight of Opie standing there. "What's going on Op?"

"Need you to grab your shit, we're going to the clubhouse. It's a lock down." He stepped inside. "He's fine," Opie told her. "He'll be better once he knows your in one of the rooms at Club Reaper."

"Alright, five minutes. Shit, might be more I've got to wake Lia up." Madeline hurried over to where her friend slept. "Hey Lia, get up. We got to go," she sighed as her friend didn't move. "Well, this should work." Lia's eyes flew open when Madeline grabbed the covers and all but knocked her off the couch. "Get up, we've got to go."

Opie hid his smirk at the fact that the redhead had managed to perfect one of her husbands grumpy faces as she started for the back bedroom. "Hey," he addressed Lia when she got to her feet and started looked for her shoes. "How is she?"

"She's holding her own but she'd do better if she knew where her Old Man is." The woman said bluntly. "He okay?"

"He is," Opie confirmed, "so is Juice. He's handling something but he'll be back in the morning." The relief on her face was obvious as she slid on a bright red sneaker. "You keep an eye on her, help her with whatever."

"I'm her friend so I intended to." Lia told him dryly. "I didn't need to be ordered to."

"Okay, I've got enough stuff for the both of us for a few days." Madeline emerged from the bedroom with a duffel bag over her shoulder.

"Let's go." Opie nodded. "Need a hand?"

"I've got the bag, make sure you've got the gun." Madeline hitched the bag higher on her shoulder. She waited to see if Opie would try to tell her that it was no big deal and appreciated it when he didn't lie.

15 15 15

Happy ran his hand over his face as he got off of his bike. The sun would be up in a few hours and Clay was still very much in the wind. The house where he'd been staying was completely empty except for a near duplicate of the picture collage they'd found up in Tacoma.

He wasn't sure how much more anger he could take to be honest. He said nothing as he headed to the rooms in the back. He wanted a shower, needed a shower because he could still smell the scent of Kyle Hobart's blood on his shirt. Despite the late hour he saw the glow of light beneath the door, Madeline was awake.

No sooner than he'd stepped in the room, she was suddenly on him. Her arms wrapped around his chest and squeezed. "You came home." Madeline whispered as she pressed her face against him.

"You okay?" he questioned, his voice gruff. "You show Tara the bruises?"

"They're nothing that I can't handle." Her hands came up to cup his face. "I love you."

"I hurt you," he closed his eyes at her touch. "You deserve better than this."

"No, I deserve you," she assured him. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I need a shower."

"Alright, come on. I'll wash your back," she offered as her hands moved down to his chest.

"Go to bed Mad, it's late. You're exhausted." Happy stilled her hand before she could feel his blood soaked tee shirt beneath his cut. She was already a little freaked, he could see it in her eyes.

"I'm not that tired besides we need to talk about shit." She stretched up and brushed her lips against his. He deepened the kiss without hesitation until he felt her body pressing against his. The memory of his hands holding her down surfaced and he took a step back from her.

"You wanna talk about Ma," he spoke bluntly. "About the services."

"She told me what she wanted, I thought we should talk about that."

"Give her what she wants," Happy told her. He pulled his shirt over her head. Madeline saw the blood but didn't comment on it. "I'll take care of it in the morning."

"I can do it, if you want. I know that some club shit is going down."

"Alright," he said simply. The last thing he wanted to do was sit down with Skeeter and plan the fucking funeral. "You do it."

"Should I even ask what happened today?"

"Probably not." He ran a hand over his face. "But I'll tell you."

"Take your shower first, I'll go and get you something to eat. You've got to be hungry."

"Thanks." Happy reached out and trailed his fingers along her face. "Mad, I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have been so..."

"Did I complain?" Rare anger flashed behind her eyes. "Or did I come? Well in case you're unsure, I'll be clear. I came. I came hard and you know it. Bruises fade Hap and to be honest, I kind of like them." A smile slid over her lips even as her cheeks reddened slightly. "Go take your shower, I'll get the food."

"Giving me orders?" He cocked an eyebrow at her, in response she smiled wide.

"Just suggesting Hap, just suggesting."

He exhaled as she left the room. That had gone way differently than he'd imagined. He'd figured that she was going to be pissed, to want to discuss everything that had happened in length. Instead she'd greeted him as she always did when he came home from doing something for the club, with a hug.

"Got to keep control." He told himself as he headed to the bathroom. If he lost his temper again the consequences could be worse for Madeline. So he'd do the best that he could and if it ever came to the point where he knew control was gone he would do what he had to do. He would leave.

15 15 15

Madeline was pretty sure that she was seeing shit as she watched Tig Trager go into a room where she swore that she'd seen Tiffany Clarkson when he opened the door. "Are you kidding me?"

She'd made her feelings clear about the girl and Tig had been right there. From what she'd heard from Juice he ordered the girl to stay away and now he was locked in a room with her. Tig Trager was about to get a big, fat piece of her mind and she didn't care if that violated some precious Old Lady rule.

Tig looked up when Madeline entered. "Ain't what it looks like." He said quickly. "This little kitten got her claws in the Prospect, in really deep. Picked her over the club, dumb fuck doesn't even realize the shit storm he's bringing down on his ass."

"Why is she here?" Madeline spit the words out between clenched teeth.

"She's apparently a little slow, didn't figure out that it was in the interest of her health to stay away. One of the crow eaters slipped her something, knocked her out. I'll shake her up some and send her on her way."

"Tig."

"Not gonna fuck her or kill her," he informed Madeline. "Am going to go through her shit, try and get an idea of what makes her tick."

"Make sure she gets the message," Madeline couldn't believe the words were coming out of her mouth.

Tig's face registered surprise. "She will." He assured. "Got to say, I'm surprised that you're so eager to have me scare her off."

"Honestly, I don't trust that little bitch," Madeline had always wondered if there was some connection between her getting Tiffany thrown out of the clubhouse and the allegations that Justin Ray made about her only days later. "Always seemed a little too coincidental that days after I get her kicked out of here I'm facing the discipline board. Probably being paranoid, doesn't really matter because I'm not going back there anyway." They had fired her after all but now it seemed to be a blessing because she couldn't imagine having to deal with trying to work right now.

Tig nodded, "don't worry Doll, I've got this covered."

"Good, I've got to get Hap some food. See you later Tigger."

Happy finished his shower before Madeline returned. He'd expected to find her there waiting for him and was glad for the few minutes he'd have alone. His mind was going over and over again the information given by Kyle Hobart and the fact that Clay was going against a club that he'd been around for since the beginning.

He'd seen a lot in his years but never anything like this. It was going to get nasty, bloody and it was more likely than not that they'd lose men as well as the opposition. From the pictures they'd found in both Tacoma and Clay's house here in Charming the bulls eye wasn't just on patched members, it was on families and friends.

There was no doubt in his mind that Clay would hurt an Old Lady to prove a point. He sure as fuck knew that it wasn't going to be his Old Lady. Frustration and anger began to take hold of him again.

"Hey." Madeline came through the door juggling a covered plate, two beers and a bottle of water.

Happy shook his head. "Would it kill you to make two trips?" It was a question that he'd asked her numerous times before. Her response was the same as always, a grin and a shoulder shrug. He moved forward and took the plate. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. Let me put it out on the table for you."

"This is good." Happy sat down on the edge of the bed. "Did you eat?"

"A little, earlier. I'm not hungry."

He looked at the plate, someone had made baked ziti and she'd given him a piece roughly the size of his head, there were four oversized meatballs, garlic bread and a little bit of green salad. "Eat some of this."

Madeline knew that refusing to eat would lead to an argument. "Alright, but you're eating like ninety percent of this. Did you eat today?"

"Nah, wasn't hungry." Happy picked up the fork and began to eat. He looked over at Madeline and she grabbed the spoon. "You sure that you're up to handling the arrangements for Ma?" His voice thicken at the thought and mention of the woman.

"I'm sure. It's so strange, I just can't believe that she's gone."

"Yeah," he agreed.

"I'm not going to push you to talk about it Happy but I hope you will talk to me." Madeline spooned up a bite of ziti.

"I will." Happy replied after a moment. "Ain't that I don't care she's gone... I'm just not going to sit around acting sad." In fact, he'd never understood what sadness was until today when Tara had confirmed what he'd already know.

"I know." Madeline licked a bit of sauce from her finger and reached for the garlic bread. "So, tell me what happened today."

Happy considered, for the first time, lying to her about what was going on but when it came down to it, he just couldn't. "You remember the trouble we had? The other club?"

"They're back?" Madeline sighed though she'd always privately thought that the other club had backed off way too fast with everything that they'd done to fuck with the Sons. Even if most of them had been killed in the house, where were the other members to avenge their fallen brothers?

"Yeah and it's worse than we thought Mad." Happy continued to eat, spoke in between bites and watched her to make sure that she was eating as well. He didn't like how frail she looked all of a sudden. "Looks like they've got a leader that we all know."

Madeline's eyes went wide. "Clay?" she whispered.

Happy's eyes snapped towards her. "You know something I don't?"

"No, it just..." Madeline tried to think of the right word, "I can see it. I mean, he lost the club and his wife who is now with another guy? And he just says, oh those are the breaks and moves on?" She shook her head. "Never sat right with me."

"Why didn't you ever say anything?"

"What could I really say? Hey, I think that your former President is up to no good? It was just a feeling Hap."

"Next time, share it. You're supposed to tell me everything." He cracked his first smile in hours. "That's what a good Old Lady does."

"You're telling me that Gemma, Luann and Tara tell their guys everything?" She giggled a little bit at the idea. "Some shit is woman's shit, nothing that you want to think about. Do you really want to know the things that I hear about your brothers?"

"You tell them shit about me?"

"They don't even ask." And they didn't but certain things might have slipped out. Nothing major of course but girls had to talk just as much as men did. "You want your beer?"

"Yeah." He watched her get up. "Gonna have to get you some more shit, gonna be here at least a few days."

"Alright, I'll give Gemma a hand in the office or something."

"You talked to the lawyer lately?"

"Not since she came to the house," Madeline frowned at the memory of hearing how badly things had gone. "I'm not upset."

Yeah she was, he realized as he read her expression but he figured that was normal in the situation. "You can be upset."

Madeline settled down on the bed next to him. "I know and I am, especially about Ma." Tears gathered in the corner of her eyes and she quickly wiped them away. "I just keep tearing up, I can't help it."

"Mad," his voice had a sudden hard edge to it. Her head snapped up. "You need to let it happen." Happy reached out and stroked his fingers over the side of her face. "You need to just cry."

"Can't." Her voice cracked. "If I start, I'm not going to stop and I can't handle that right now."

"Alright," he kept his voice low, hoped that she found it comforting. "You let me know when you're ready."

"I will," Madeline smiled. "I love you."

"Love you too." He picked his fork back up. "Now eat more."

15 15 15

Tig wondered why in the fuck a teenage girl needed to carry a ten pound purse. He rifled through the contents, nothing unexpected. There was makeup, a shit load of makeup, some electronic gadgets and enough condoms to make a crow eater proud. He checked the wallet, dropped it back in and then his fingers grazed a leather case.

He expected to maybe find a pair of glasses, hell even a nice sex toy wouldn't have surprised him but the bloody syringe inside of a small plastic bag gave him a jolt. Tig shifted and held the bag up to the light. There was a piece of paper inside the bag but he couldn't make out the writing. He rose, went over to the lamp. "Well, that's fucking interesting." Why was Tiffany Clarkson carrying around a piece of paper with Justin Ray's name on it?

Tig continued to search the purse as the girl remained unconscious on the bed. "Get your rest Princess because I've got some questions for you."

15 15 15

Madeline was fast asleep, her body curved towards him and her head nuzzled against his arm. She was having a bad dream, Happy could tell so he pulled her to him tight until she was peaceful again.

She rolled over into his warm spot the minute that he slipped out of bed. He pulled on jeans and grabbed his cigarettes. The club house was deserted and he saw no one awake as he went out onto the lot and sat down on the picnic table.

There was too much in his mind for him to sleep. Hell, his mother hadn't been dead twenty four hours yet and now the seemingly squashed MC was a total threat. Clay was a lot of things and at the top of the list was the fact that he was smart, really smart and there was no one more conniving than the man. He got what he wanted. He was not a man to back down.

Kyle had said that Charming was going to burn, with Clay behind The Forsaken Happy had no doubt that the man was right.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that you recognize.

A/N: This chapter is a little shorter than the previous chapters but it's got a punch to it or at least I think that it does. I hope that you agree. Again, you all rock hard. It's a few days late but I hope you all had a great new year.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The arrangements had been simple to make. Skeeter was quite helpful, if not a little creepy, but definitely helpful. "I'll take really good care of Ms. Lowman, like I would my own mother," he spoke in a serious tone.

"I appreciate that," Madeline sniffled and wiped at her eyes with a tissue. It seemed that she always needed a tissue since Eve passed away. "I can give you a check or get cash out of the bank, whatever is easier for you."

"Oh, don't worry about that." Skeeter's face grew serious. "No charge."

"But..." She looked at the casket she'd picked out, it was top of the line and at least three grand and that wasn't even mentioning the viewing and service that Eve had wanted.

"Please," he told her. "It's the last thing that you and Happy should have to worry about right now. I'll have everything set up and perfect, I promise."

"Skeeter, are you sure?"

"Just said that I was, you should probably get going. It's getting dark out." He looked out the window with a frown. Many of Charming's residents seemed to have a sixth sense when things were going down with Samcro, most of them would never speak of it but did what they could to stay off the streets at night. "I should give you a ride."

"Don't be ridiculous, I've got my car." Madeline reached down and patted her purse. "I've got it covered."

Happy would probably shit a stack of bricks if he found out that she'd nicked one of the guns he kept at the club house because they'd both agreed that her marksman skills made her a menace but it made her feel better. She also had the knife he'd given her and a huge slice on her thigh to prove that she'd been practicing with it.

Madeline chuckled to herself as she left the funeral home, remembering Happy's reaction to finding her in the bathroom getting patched up by Tara in the middle of the day. It had only been five stitches and the doctor could barely manage to finish suturing when Happy had started to lay into Madeline. Finally she'd finished and fled.

It was the first time that she'd ever actually feared that he would hit her. His eyes had gone pitch black, his hands curled into tight fists. At first he'd just yelled, not even sure what he was saying but it was enough to scare off the doctor. It took a few minutes for her to realize that he was so angry because he was scared, scared that she could have done worse damage to herself.

Talking him down had taken time and in the end she wasn't sure anything that she'd said had convinced him to calm down. He'd just stopped yelling, given her a kiss that made her toes curl and ordered her to take whatever pain pill Tara had left for her and lay down. Despite saying he was going out to see what his brothers were up to he'd spent the night at her side.

She could never imagine loving someone the way that she loved him. Her mind was on what she should make for him for dinner as she stuck the key into the lock of her truck. Madeline blinked and pulled the key back out slowly because she knew for a fact that she'd locked the door when she went inside. Just like she knew that she hadn't left the bottle of water she'd been drinking on the seat.

"SHIT!" Madeline stomped her foot against the ground as she stepped back from the truck. Where the hell was the prospect? For a moment she froze but then she felt the comforting weight of her purse on her shoulder, she felt some of her nerves subside as her hand curled around the hilt of her knife.

With her other hand she grabbed her phone and dialed the Teller-Morrow office. "TM Automotive. This is Charles speaking, how may I help you?"

"Chuckie, it's Maddy. I just left Skeeter's and somethings not right, I'm going back inside. Please send someone."

"I ACCEPT THAT," he shouted the words and hung up the phone.

There was no answer when she knocked on the door. "Jesus Christ, are you kidding me?" Angrily she kicked several times at the door but there was still no answer. "Fuck." One thing was clear, she didn't want to just be out in the open and she didn't want to go near the truck. She slipped off of the porch and around the side of the house, maybe there was a back door.

16 16 16

Smoke hung thick in the air of the Samcro Chapel as everyone tried to figure out what Clay's next move was and where he would be. There was no question that he needed to be found immediately. "We've got to stay alert, I've called Tacoma and they're heading down. Indian Hills and most of the Nomads will be here tomorrow." Jax lit another cigarette. "Anyone got anything new?"

"I've been thinking." Juice spoke up.

"God help us," Tig chimed in with a smirk. "Don't hurt yourself."

"Fuck you," Juice flipped him the middle finger. "Right after Jax took over the gavel, when Clay was still hanging around here we'd have beers together sometimes and he was getting pretty bitter. First time that he saw Nero bring Gemma to the lot, well I thought he was gonna kill him or himself. He started spending time up at the cabin but I think he wasn't really staying there. I went up one day and he was coming out of the woods, what if he's got a place up there? Somewhere he could be hiding out?"

"There are places up there, ones that have been abandoned so it's possible." Opie stroked his fingers over his beard. "No harm in checking it out."

Jax nodded in agreement. "Alright. Op, take Chibs and Juice with you."

"I'll go too if you need me," Happy offered.

"Nah, stay close. I want you here with me."

"What about me?" Tig questioned.

"Want you close too."

Before Tig could say anything else the door to The Chapel flew open, Chuckie stumbled inside. "I know that I'm not supposed to be in here but it's..."

"Spit it out Chuckles." Chibs growled.

"Maddy said that something's off at Skeeter's."

Happy was the first to his feet. "Where's the fucking Prospect?" he growled. He'd had a real clear talk with Darren and the kid knew what was going to happen to him if anything at all happened to his Old Lady during his watch.

"I don't know."

"Let's go." Jax rose to his feet. "Tig, you and Juice stay here and keep this place locked down."

"We'll handle it." Tig assured the blonde man and nodded to Happy who had nothing but rage in his eyes at the mere thought that Madeline was in trouble.

16 16 16

Madeline was on the back porch of the funeral home because the back door had been locked. Skeeter hadn't answered when she'd knocked there either. Where the hell were the guys? Had Chuckie not told them?

The longer that she waited, the more scared she got. "Shit Madeline, get it the fuck together. You're a Lowman now. Lowman's aren't scared little bitches." A plume of smoke caught her eye and she looked over the large lot to where the a small building stood at the edge of a sparse wooded area, it had to be where cremations took place. "Of course." How had she not thought that was where he might have went? He'd mentioned having to prepare a client, it had given her the creeps honestly.

It was the last place that she wanted to go but what choice did she have? If that's where Skeeter was, at least he wouldn't be alone and just maybe he'd noticed where Darren had taken off to. It was unusual for the man to not be where he was supposed to, he took guarding her very seriously.

Madeline was too worried looking around to see if anyone else was there to be looking in front of her, when she tripped her hand shot out to try and break her fall. Her hand hit something warm, something wet and it took her brain a second to register that she was touching Darren. He was most certainly dead.

16 16 16

Happy slammed the kick stand down and shut off the engine. The second the roar of the bike was gone he heard Madeline scream. His blood ran cold and not one of his brother's could keep up with him as he sprinted towards the back of the house.

His guns were in his hands, ready to fire at whoever had made her scream. When he saw her on the ground and saw the blood her, he crossed to her in record time. "Mad."

"It's not mine. It's not my blood." She looked up at him, eyes wide with terror. "Darren is..." she could only point towards the destroyed body in front of her. "I came out, couldn't find him. He's dead Hap. Dead."

"She's in shock." Chibs stepped forward.

"No, I'm fine," she protested as she scrambled to her feet. "I'll go back to the clubhouse, let you deal with... this." A shrill laugh escaped her throat. "Guess it's kind of good that we're here, saves having to take him far." Another laugh slipped through and she brought her hand up to cover her mouth. "I'm sorry, I..."

Happy saw her shiver and immediately shrugged off his cut. "Take this." He held it out to her and watched her take it carefully. He unzipped the sweatshirt he wore beneath and moved to drape it over her shoulders. "Better?"

"Much, thank you." Madeline handed over the cut.

"Someone will take you back," he informed her. "Let Tara take a look at you, alright?"

"I will," she promised with a nod.

Happy adjusted his cut and reached out for her. She sure as shit was in shock, he'd never seen her so stiff before. "You with me Mad?"

"Always."

"C'mere." He pulled her against his chest, felt her shoulders shake. "Listen to me," his voice was low and for her ears only, "you're going to be fine. Just hold it together until I get back. Can you do that?"

"Yes." Madeline clutched desperately at his tee shirt. "Hurry back?"

"Quick as I can," he promised as he pressed a kiss to her hair. "I'll get Op to take you back." He knew that he could trust the man without a doubt.

"Okay," Madeline nodded. "I love you."

"Hey Op!" Happy released her and took a step back. "Take Madeline back for me. You got your keys Mad?"

"Yes. Wait," her eyes went wide. "My car, someone unlocked the doors and moved my water bottle. Don't look at me like that, someone did. The hair stood up on the back of my neck, it spooked me."

Happy could tell that she was serious by her expression and his girl didn't spook easily. "You sure you locked the doors?"

"Yes, I'm positive Happy. I locked the doors and I threw my water bottle on the floor like I always do, I know it." She met his eyes and willed him to believe her. "I got a bad feeling."

Happy remembered the last bad feeling that she hadn't told him about, her concern that there was something up with Clay. He'd asked her to tell him shit like that and now she was. Even if she'd just forgotten to lock the door, he had to check. "I'm going to check it out." He told her in a firm tone. "You stay here. Wait for me to come back."

"Here?" Madeline glanced over to where Chibs and Jax were crouched over what remained of Darren.

"Come on." He nodded to Opie as the large man approached. "Might have a problem with her car, doors are unlocked and shits moved around. Prospect was supposed to be keeping an eye on her and the fucking cage."

"Sure you just didn't leave the doors unlocked Maddy?" Opie questioned. "Hell, last week Lyla left the door to the van open and the battery ran out."

Madeline didn't answer. Happy eyed her, perhaps Chibs had a point about shock. His girl would normally have defended herself but she just stood staring ahead but he was pretty sure she wasn't seeing shit.

Opie seemed to notice the same thing. "I'll check it out, maybe take Maddy inside and get her something to drink."

She went inside without protest and drank the bottle of orange juice he found in the fridge in several gulps. "Sit down," he ordered.

"I finished Ma's arrangements." Madeline's voice sounded far away to her own ears. "Skeeter said... he said that he wouldn't take any money from me, from us."

Happy nodded. "He's a creepy fuck but a good guy."

"I'm not going to fall apart." Madeline rolled the empty orange juice bottle between her hands. "We're not going to fall apart. Tell me that we're not going to fall apart."

"We ain't falling apart." His voice was rough as he reached out to take the bottle from her hands. "It's you and me."

The back door opened and Opie stepped in, a serious look on his face. "Hap, can I talk to you a second?" he looked over at Madeline and then back at the man, "alone?"

In that instant Happy knew that someone had been wrong with the car. Madeline's instinct had been right. She looked up at him, she wanted to know what Opie had to say. "You can talk here." Happy said finally.

"There was a device on the car on a timer, a ten minute timer." Opie ran a hand over his face. "A brick of C4, if it had ignited..." he didn't have to say anything else. "It would have started counting down when the ignition turned over, I've got someone coming from the yard with the truck."

Happy just nodded, it was all that he could do because if he spoke or acted he was going to scare his girl more than she already was.

"Someone was going to blow me up?" Madeline frowned and then started to laugh. It was a hysterical sort of laughter. "Ten minutes? If I left here it would have taken me about ten minutes to get back to the yard."

"Don't think about that," Happy snapped. "You weren't in the car, it didn't happen."

"Someone probably killed Darren to get the chance to get at my truck, right? Hard to install a brick of C4 if he's watching." She exhaled deeply, someone had killed Darren so that they could also get to her. It was all her fault.

"Actually," Opie scratched at the back of his neck. "something like that is pretty quick to install if you know what you're doing. We'll take it back to the lot and I'll see what I can figure out about it. Truck might be out of commission a few days."

Happy nodded, "Take all the time that you need Brother." He looked down to where Madeline was once again staring into space. "Mad?" She didn't respond. "Mad." He repeated and saw concern cross Opie's face as well. "Fuck. Mad!" He nearly shouted her name and she jolted.

"I'm sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for, c'mon." He held out his hand to her and squeezed when she took it. "Let's go back to the club house."

16 16 16

Skeeter stared down at the bag which held the sloshing remains of Darren. There were some days when even the glorious head he got from Emily Duncan for helping out the club didn't feel like enough. This was one of those days. He'd seen too many Sons on his table and he'd really liked this kid.

It was quiet now, the Sons had gone back to the clubhouse except for Juice who was in the house trying to get anything he could off of the ancient security camera the funeral home held. He moved the bag into one of the coolers and turned back to prepare the next body for cremation.

"How's it going Skeeter?"

The voice that came from the door behind him was familiar, too familiar. Fear clenched Skeeter's stomach as he turned to face Clay Morrow. The man wore a new cut, black with gold detailing and a familiar grin. "Didn't expect to see you around here Clay."

"What can I say? It's hard to stay away. Look, I'm not here to cause trouble for you, I'm here to make you an offer and it'll be a very lucrative offer for you. More work than you can handle probably. All I need from you is one piece of information."

"What?" Skeeter met the man's eyes though it was possibly the hardest thing that he'd ever done.

"Just need to know when you're sticking Ms. Lowman in the ground, you know so that I can pay my respects."

16 16 16

Madeline's nerves were shot. She was sitting at the bar with Piney, sipping a glass of tequila through a straw. She'd asked for a bottle like his but he'd told her to pace herself. The liquor was calming her but she kept looking over at the door. Her truck had been carefully unloaded so that Bobby and Opie could work on getting the device off, even with it off she wasn't sure that she'd ever want to drive it again and that pissed her off. It was her first brand new vehicle and Happy had surprised her with it.

"Quit thinking so hard," Piney advised her. "Can practically see the steam coming out of your ears. Just keep drinking and be glad that you noticed the doors were unlocked, that was smart. You're a smart girl." He patted her hand. "Speaking of you being smart, how long you plan on just bumming around without working?"

"I want to go back to work, just doesn't seem like there's a whole lot of opportunity for me right now." She'd put in applications in Lodi, Stockton and Oakland. Oakland had shown some interest in her but Happy had shot that down with a dark stare and a growl. He'd be damned if she worked in the middle of gang territory, it was just too dangerous.

"So make an opportunity, hell you could start your own business if you wanted."

"Need cash to do that," Madeline pointed out. "How did you know that I thought about that?"

"I'm a smart man," he chuckled. "Might be old and on my way out but I've still got some of my facilities left."

"Don't say that, you've got a lot of good years ahead of you especially if you quit smoking."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Don't try and get all Gemma on me."

"Oh, I wouldn't dare. I've got weapons Gemma's got no clue about."

"Oh?" He cocked an eyebrow at her and was just about to light the joint in his hand when she shot him a look that would have made a sad puppy proud. "Jesus fucking Christ." He handed the joint over to her. "You know, you remind me of my daughter a little bit. You and Donna would have gotten on like a house on fire."

"I've heard great things about her and the kids, I love the kids."

"Should do something with kids for your business," he suggested. "I'm just saying think about it."

"I will."

"Hey," Tig approached the bar and pointed at her. "Got a minute?"

"Sure," Madeline frowned at the expression on his face. "Excuse me Piney." He just waved a hand at her as she slipped off of the stool. "What's up?"

"Got that little bitch at the cabin." Tig said when they were alone on the other side of the bar. "She's a problem that needs to be handled."

"I thought that you were handling it Tig."

"Yeah well scaring her off ain't an option. Shouldn't even be bringing this shit to you I should just go right to Hap."

"What did you find out?"

"She's carrying around the works that she used to give Justin Ray a hot shot, a fatal dose of meth."

"I know what a hot shot is," annoyance crept into her voice. "How do you know that's what it was?"

"Twisted little tart had a piece of paper with his name on it tucked in the baggie with the shit. I gave her incentive to talk," he smiled and it chilled Madeline's blood. "Not how you're thinking, told her that I realized I wanted her to stay away because I want her and got her convinced I'm going to make her my Old Lady." It was Tig's turn to shudder. "Told her a good Old Lady has to tell her man everything so she did."

"Jesus Christ," Madeline pressed her fingers against her eyes.

"She was behind his shit to the school board, you really pissed her off when you caught her here with Juice, fucked up her plans."

"What do we do now?"

"Only one thing to do Doll, get rid of her. She's too much of a risk."

"Who is too much of a risk?" Happy's voice from behind them was a low growl. Madeline turned, saw his expression and let out a sigh. "Start fucking talking."

Before she or Tig could say a word the door to the club house flew open. "Clay was at Skeeter's." Jax looked as pissed as anyone had ever seen him. "Let's roll, now. Juice is following him from a distance."

"The fuck was he doing at Skeeter's?" Happy demanded.

"Asking about your mother's service, said he wanted to pay his respects."

"Let's go." Happy's eyes flashed darkly. "You, stay the fuck here. Do not leave the yard for anything, I don't give a shit if this place burns down. You stay here. We'll finish this when I get back."


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of SOA.

A/N: Another update for you guys, I got this chapter out pretty quick and am excited to say that I've got some interesting stuff coming up. Hopefully you'll all like it as much as I do. Enough of me, read and enjoy :)

Chapter SEVENTEEN

Hours passed and Madeline couldn't sleep, all she could think about was the look on Happy's face when he'd overheard her and Tig. She should have gone to him, told him what she suspected about Tiffany Clarkson, but she hadn't and now she was going to pay the price for it. There was no doubt in her mind that the fight they were going to have over the situation was going to be the biggest that they'd ever had.

It might just be the fight to break them. Each moment that passed made her more and more nervous, the nerves combined with the tequila she drank earlier with Piney had her in the small bathroom of his dorm room emptying her stomach contents into the toilet again and again. Sweat bloomed over her skin and she could only rest her head against her hands.

She jumped when she heard the door to the room slam and Happy's hard footsteps. Her stomach revolted once more. "You shouldn't have drank all that fucking tequila with Piney." There was a hard edge to his voice, one that she'd never heard directed at her before.

Madeline reached up and flushed the toilet, she looked over her shoulder at him and got to her feet. Fuck, he was pissed. "Hap."

"Don't." He held up a hand. "I don't want to hear it. I got enough shit going on without you being stupid behind my back." His rage was evident, his hands were gripped into tights fists and Madeline knew that there was nothing to say to defend herself. "You should have come to me, not Tig. I'm your fucking Old Man, not him."

"I'm sorry."

"So the fuck am I," he growled the words. "Thought you were smarter than this."

"Hap."

"Shut up," the words came out a growl.

"We've got to talk about this."

"Nothing to talk about. It's done."

"What's done?"

"The little bitch is dead," he said with no noticeable change to his expression. "Wasn't any other choice in the matter and we both know it." Happy watched as her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, with as much shit as she could deal with it was easy to forget that she was essentially an innocent in this outlaw life that he lived.

Madeline sat down hard on the toilet. She'd considered the fact that Tig was going to kill Tiffany but she'd never considered the fact that Happy would do it. "Hap, I..."

"I said shut up. I don't want to hear shit out of you. Clean up and go to bed," he shook his head and resisted the urge to grab her and shake her. How could she not have come to him with this? To go to anyone else but him was disrespectful and somehow going to Tig was the most disrespectful move at all.

Madeline took a step forward but his stance stopped her. She let her eyes fall to the floor with a sigh. "I love you Hap." There hadn't been one time when she'd said the words that he hadn't responded but apparently tonight was that night. His silence was like a kick to the stomach so she turned away not wanting him to see the look on her face.

She moved more on autopilot than anything else, turned on the water in the shower and began to strip off her clothes. Madeline stilled when she felt his hand on her back. "You said you knew what this meant," his fingers moved across her crow. "You don't know shit."

"Please..."

"I don't want to hear it. Shower and clean the fuck up, I'll be back when I'm back."

"Ma's service is..."

"Don't call her that, you don't fucking deserve to call her that." Happy turned and slammed his fist into the wall hard enough to break the sheet rock. "Don't..." he growled when Madeline turned and went to reach her hand out to him. "Don't fucking open your mouth and don't touch me. You wanted to make your own decision on this now deal with it."

The water continued to run until it was cold but all that Madeline could do was stare at the door that her husband had just walked out of and wonder if he would ever walk back in.

17 17 17

Happy drank straight from the bottle of Jack Daniels in his hand as a blonde woman clumsily worked the stripper pole, Bobby and Chibs shouted words of encouragement at her. The clueless bitch brought it and began to take off more of her clothes. Amused he continued to watch and drink. He lit a cigarette and glanced over at the doors from the back rooms.

He tensed at the sight of Madeline but remained where he was. He just took another sip out of the bottle as she began to navigate the room towards him. What did she think that she could possibly say that was going to make what the fuck she did right? Anger flared and he held it back.

"Hey," She sat down on the couch next to him.

"Thought I told you to go to bed."

"I fucked up," she spoke bluntly. "I know that I did and now we've got to get over it because this crow and this ring mean that we're in it together through it all. You can be pissed off at me as you want, that's fine. I'm sure I'll return the favor one day but you don't get to walk away." Madeline kept her eyes on his even when he gave her a look that would have made most men piss their pants. "I'm going to play some pool with Lyla."

"Do what you want," he shrugged his shoulders and took another sip from the bottle.

Madeline reached out for him and he pulled back, she sighed and leaned in even closer. "I love you," her lips pressed to his cheek and then she was on her feet. He watched as she approached Lyla, it wasn't long before Luann wandered over.

He relaxed his clenched fists, he couldn't believe the balls she had but even as it pissed him off he wanted to smirk. No one really understood how stubborn Madeline could be or how much that turned him on. She turned him on, his little redheaded devil. Fuck! There was so much noise in his head that he wasn't sure what to do.

Except he knew that he was doing exactly what his mother had warned him not too, he was letting his anger push her away. Double fuck. He wasn't built for this shit, he'd rather cut someones fingers off with a pair of cuticle trimmers than actually try and put words to the shit raging through him.

Maybe she'd be better off without him, shit he'd bruised her pretty bad already and in the room he'd had the unsettling urge to just reach out and shake her until she realized it but she'd shot him down.

"Honey, he is staring daggers at you. I don't think he knows if he wants to kiss or kill you," Luanne sighed. "Otto used to look at me like that." The blonde took her shot, missed by a mile but didn't seem to care. "So, you got anything planned to help him figure it out."

"I said what I had to say." Madeline knew Happy, he'd have to get shit right in his head before he'd let her back in. It needed to happen soon, she realized that the anger wasn't so much from the Tiffany fiasco but from Eve and the void left by her death. "Now I'm going to drink beer and try to forget I almost got blown to hell today."

"I still can't believe that, such a freak thing to have your gas line explode like that." Lyla shook her head. "I'd have been a wreck."

"Oh, me too." Luann sympathized but quickly changed the subject to something else.

17 17 17

Luann could drink and so could Lyla, Madeline was completely shit faced and it was taking both women to keep her upright. "Oh shit." Lyla burst out in a fit of giggles as Madeline stumbled. "Alright Maddy, take it slow."

"Never seen Madeline this drunk before," Opie commented.

"I have," Happy watched her. He nearly smirked at the memory of the last time that he'd seen her so drunk. This was either going to be really good or really bad, he couldn't decide which.

"I'm gonna grab Lyla, head to bed. Try and get some rest. We're got a pretty big day ahead of us tomorrow." Opie clamped a large hand on Happy's shoulder.

Juice had followed Clay to a location about three miles from the cabin, the intelligence officer had got as far as the foot of a well secured driveway before realizing he was in over his head. He'd waited for his brothers to arrive and they'd nearly lost Kozik to a fucking land mine when a rabbit darted out of the brush a few yards ahead of him.

They'd decided that it was too close to dark, they needed to be able to see where they were going. In the morning, they'd go back with the boys riding in from Tacoma as well as the contingency of Nomads heading back from Miami to back them up. One way or another, it was going to be over.

"Yeah," Happy eyed Madeline as she turned towards the back of the clubhouse. What the fuck was she doing now? "See you in the morning Brother." He slid off of his stool and moved to follow Madeline.

"Hey there Stranger." The voice that spoke was female, sultry and Happy recognized the raven haired woman the second she stepped in front of him. "You miss me Big Guy?" Claire was from Tacoma, Queen of the Sweetbutts and proud of it. "Heard you got yourself an Old Lady."

"What do you want Claire?"

"That is a loaded question Hap, I know what you want. I know that look." She took a step closer to him, ran a red tipped finger nail down his chest slowly.

"You don't know shit bitch." He told her. "Fuck are you doing here?"

"What I do best Big Guy, relieving the tension."

"That hand goes any lower and you're gonna never be able to use it again." Madeline's voice made Happy look away from Claire. She was still obviously drunk but anger had focused her so she no longer swayed as she stood, her arms were crossed over her chest and if he had to guess he'd say she was less than sixty seconds away from taking a swing at the other woman.

Claire removed her hand slowly, made a show of it. "Guess I'll just see you later Hap, I'm looking forward to it."

Happy let out a snort of laughter, he couldn't help it because he was looking forward to what he knew was going to happen next. No one else seemed to believe their eyes when Madeline cocked her fist back. Claire didn't move quickly enough to avoid the blow, she stumbled back but only for a second.

Madeline hit her again when she lunged and then Claire got a hit in as well. Madeline's head jerked back. Happy took a step forward but didn't have to intervene as his girl grabbed the other woman by the hair and took her down to the floor.

It was a down and dirty fight, Madeline heard her shirt rip at some point but she didn't stop her assault on Claire. The other woman bit her a couple of times too, dirty desperate tricks to try and stop the beat down that she was receiving.

Claire screamed as Madeline hit her obviously broken nose again. "Stay the fuck away from my Old Man. Got me?"

"Yes." The woman all but sobbed the word. Madeline got to her feet, and realized just how many people were watching her. She looked over to Happy and couldn't read his expression. Without a word to anyone she started towards the room, it had been her goal all along. She just wanted to go lay down.

Happy was behind her in a flash, his hand shot out and grabbed her arm. "Where the fuck you going?"

"To bed," she replied as he jerked her so that she was facing him. "Unless you had plans for the room that didn't involve me." Madeline held her ground even when he growled and pulled her closer to him, a hiss of pain escaped her mouth as her hand brushed against his chest.

"What the fuck do you think?" He demanded as he released her arm and grabbed her wrist. "Jesus Christ, you probably broke your knuckles."

"I'll be fine," she winced when he ran his finger over the knuckle in question. "Can we just go to bed?" she looked up with a hopeful expression.

"I wouldn't have fucked around with her," Happy stated. "C'mon," he lead her back to the room and locked the door behind them. "You alright?"

"I hurt," Madeline sighed.

"Sit down," he pointed to the straight backed chair. His movements were efficient as he grabbed the first aid kit and a bottle of water. Happy knelt in front of her. "What the fuck am I going to do with you?" Normally she'd smile when he said that but not tonight, she just looked tired.

"Love me?" she suggested.

"You know I do," he opened the kit and took her hand in his gently. "This is gonna string a little."

"Will you tell me what happened with Tiffany and with Clay?"

Happy began to clean her hands up, the swelling wasn't as bad as he'd feared in the hall. He really should have gotten an ice pack out of the kitchen. "We found where Clay's hiding, we're going after him first thing tomorrow. As far as the little bitch, she had to go. You really want to know the details of how that went down?"

"No, I'd like to sleep tonight," she hissed as he applied ointment to her knuckle. "I really am sorry."

"Me too," Happy said bluntly. "You know I don't know how to do this shit."

"Neither do I so we're even. So, on a scale of one to ten how bad is it going to be tomorrow?"

"Twelve," he replied without hesitation. "The place is booby trapped, land mines and shit; we'll be careful. Juice is working on figuring out a way through the back." He wrapped her hand as gently as he could. "Gonna be fine Maddy."

"Fuck," she ran her good hand over her face. "You better come home."

"Always." Happy leaned in and kissed her on the lips. "You need a shower."

"I've only got one hand."

"That's alright, I've got two," he slipped a plastic bag over her hand and secured it with a rubber band. "That'll keep it dry."

"We're okay?"

"Yeah Mad, we're good." He shook his head. "You just better never do that shit again because next time I will tear your ass up. You will not enjoy it."

"I won't, I know better now." She shifted to brush her lips against his.

Happy deepened the kiss and she hissed. "Shit, sorry. My lip is really swollen I guess."

"Looks like it is." Happy brought his lips to hers as gently as he could. "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up and in bed."

"Hap?"

"Yeah?"

"I know that you're still probably mad about everything so I appreciate that you're trying to work past it, I really do but..." she sighed, "that thing you said about me not deserving to call Eve Ma? That was really fucked up."

"I know." He rose to his feet and helped her to hers. "Told you, I don't know how to do any of this shit."

Madeline wanted to tell him that excuse could only go so far, even if it was the truth but she didn't because she knew that he was trying. "You knew what to say to hurt me. I can get past that but I don't want you always go for a kill shot when we fight Hap, I did that already and I never want to do it again."

Happy was taken aback that she'd even mentioned her ex-husband. It was a subject they very rarely discussed, she believed that the past was the past and should be left there. "The two of you fought a lot?"

Madeline nodded. "I thought that it was normal, hell it's what I saw at home. It got ugly quick and often."

"That isn't going to be us Mad," Happy told her, as serious as she'd ever seen him. "I promise."

She could count the number of times that he'd promised her something on one hand with fingers left over. "Okay," it was all she needed to say. She trusted her Old Man. "I think we had enough serious talk for tonight."

"Yes," he replied without hesitation and tugged her gently towards the bathroom. He reached in and turned on the spray. "You're going to have a bruise tomorrow," his fingers ghosted over her cheek.

"Dumb bitch," Madeline sighed. "Got my lip and cheek with the one hit she managed to get in, just my luck."

"You gave it to her way worse," Happy pointed out. "Broke her nose, that's for sure and I think maybe her cheek too." He smirked and pulled back the shower curtain. "Got to tell you, you're lucky I just didn't grab you and throw you over my shoulder after seeing that."

"Well now you can understand how it feels when I watch you in the ring." Madeline leaned down to pull off her shoes but he reached out and stopped her.

"Never thought about that," Happy couldn't help but chuckle at the thought. "Guess I should just be bringing you right back here every time."

"I wouldn't complain," she watched as he took her heels off. "Ah, that feels amazing."

"Just getting started," he assured her as he worked his way up to the button of her jeans. She trembled when his fingers brushed over her stomach. If she kept up like that than he was going to lose control and he didn't want that. This needed to be different from last time so that she realized just how much he loved and needed her.

He undressed her slowly appreciating every one of her curves and her soft skin; her breath hitched every time that he brushed his fingers against that soft skin. Madeline let out a sigh when he stepped back from her to undress. "You okay Girl?"

"Never better," she watched him take off his clothes, everything went on the floor but his cut. He hung that up neatly on a hook on the door. "I just wish that we were home," she admitted.

"Our bed is way better than this one," he agreed.

"It is," Madeline stepped into the shower and hissed as the too hot water hit her skin. She adjusted the taps quickly. "And we'll be home soon, once all this Clay shit is done."

"Yeah," Happy joined her beneath the shower head and reached for the soap. "Let's get you cleaned up."

Madeline enjoyed him taking care of her, washing her hair and running the soap over her skin made her stomach full of anticipation for what he would do next. Showering together, like this, reminded her of after she'd been taken and hurt; they'd hardly known one another but he'd taken careful care of her. That was when she knew that she loved him but she'd known better than to tell him then.

She knew him better than he'd ever realized and that was how she knew that he was holding back, he wanted more from her than to just wash her skin and soothe her wounds but he didn't ask for it or attempt a move.

Happy stilled as her hand slipped between their bodies. "You're hurt."

"Not that hurt," she corrected. "And you're insane if you think a bruise and a maybe broken knuckle is going to keep me from being with you."

"Some people do think I'm insane," he commented and it was his last coherent statement as Madeline dropped down to her knees in front of him. He'd be a liar if he said that this wasn't one of his favorite positions to have her in.

Madeline didn't have to stroke him more than a few times to get him rock hard. His quick reaction caused a reaction of her own, as her tongue swirled over the head of his length his hands found her hair. She let him guide her, surprised that he was so gentle with her but she wasn't going to complain.

The specter of the following day was in the back of her mind as she took him in deeply, felt his length twitch inside of her mouth. She could have pulled back and he'd have happily came but instead she kept him in because she craved the taste of him more than she'd ever thought possible.

Happy let out an inhuman sounding grunt as she drank the last drop that he had to offer. He reached for her and pulled her to her feet. A delighted gasp escaped her throat as he lifted her. She wound her legs around his waist and held tight as he stepped out of the shower. "Turn the water off Hap," Madeline giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck.

He shut off the taps and carried her into the bedroom. It crossed his mind that this was the wrong place for her, the rough room with mismatched furniture and cheap sheets that had seen too many trips through a washing machine were the opposite of what they had at home. "Sorry you've got to be here," and he was. She'd be so much more comfortable if they were home.

"Why?" She asked as her eyes met his. "You're here, that makes this the exact place that I want to be."

"Say it," he requested as he laid her down on the bed carefully.

"I love you," her smile was wide.

"I love you," he replied. The joy that he saw in her eyes from hearing the words made him feel like a piece of shit, he should say it more often. He didn't not say it because he didn't mean it, in fact most of the time it felt just the opposite. He loved her more than he'd ever thought humanly possible.

Madeline could almost hear his internal dialogue, knew that he was beating himself up about something. He did it more often than he'd ever admit to but she knew her man. So to get him out of his head she decided that a little distraction was in order.

The moment her lips touched his she knew how the night would end, they'd fall asleep sated after a round or two. He'd actually be able to sleep, to face whatever he needed to in the morning well rested.

"Mmm." Madeline moaned as his mouth found her throat. His hands were already all over her, the fact that he was hard again was clearly evident as he pressed against her. She knew that he would take his time with her if she let him but she didn't want that. "Please."

Happy inhaled a deep breath. "You sure Girl?"

"Fuck me," she met his eyes.

He didn't need to be asked twice, he shifted so that just the very tip of him was inside of her and rocked his hips slowly. "Show me that you want it."

Madeline dug her fingers into her arms and moved her hips against him. It took only a moment before he pushed fully inside of her. "Fuck. Hap. Fuck." It wasn't the most eloquent of speeches but he knew what she wanted.

They moved together, hard and fast; frantic motions that guided them toward shared release. The closer that Madeline came the harder her nails dug into his arms and back. She fought the feelings that swirled inside of her.

"Cut that shit out," Happy felt her pulling back, trying to hold out. "Let it happen." He slammed his hips against hers hard enough to draw a shout from her. The sound filled him with a sense of pride because she normally kept herself pretty well contained within the walls of the club house because she knew that sound carried. "Come on Mad, come on."

Madeline threw her head back and cried out his name as her body went completely still before jerking in spastic motions as her walls clenched around him hard and tight. Happy growled in response and let her body pull him over the edge.

"Feel like I just gave blood," Happy grunted as he slipped off of her and moved to pull the covers down so that she wouldn't get cold.

"Mmm." Madeline agreed as she snuggled her body against his. "Wake me up in the morning before you go?"

"Yeah, get some sleep." He pressed his lips to her temple and let his hand move to cover the crow on her back.

She drifted off quickly but he laid there for a while, listening to the sound of her gentle breathing. He'd wake her before he left because he needed to see those pretty eyes before he left, just in case. The idea that he might not come back from something had never really bothered him before but it bothered him now, enough so that he was going to need to have a talk with Jax about Madeline's future if something were to happen to him.

Madeline sighed in her sleep, her hand slid down to rest on his stomach and he pressed his lips to her hair once again. "Fucking love you Girl."


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

He'd waited as long as he could to wake her but now it was time. "Mad," Happy crouched down next to the bed. "C'mon, get your ass up." He sighed when she just nuzzled her face deeper into the pillow. "Mad, I'm leaving."

That got her attention and her eyes opened quickly. "Already?"

"It's seven, we're going to get on the road. Give me a kiss." He shifted so that she could reach his lips. "Keep your ass inside."

"I want to walk you out," she'd seen and participated in the ritual enough times to know that Tara and Lyla would be out there, kids running around and Gemma overlooking everything with one of her cigarettes in her hand.

"You don't have to."

"Said I wanted to." Madeline pushed the covers back. "I should probably put some clothes on."

"You better," he told her with amusement in his voice. "I'd hate to have to shoot my Brothers for staring, especially this morning."

"You ready for this?" Madeline tried to hide her worry as she picked up a long sleeved black thermal shirt that he'd tossed on the chair at some point. The close quarters at the clubhouse meant that things were messier than either of them would have normally put up with. She hunted through her duffel bag and pulled out a pair of gray shorts.

"I'm always ready. You're wearing those?" he questioned as she slid them on. "Fucking shirt is longer than the shorts."

Madeline slipped the shorts back off. She chose a pair of plaid pajama pants and pulled them on instead. "Better?"

Happy nodded. "You got everything set for Ma's service tomorrow?"

"Yes," she was surprised that he'd even brought it up. She'd tried to talk about it the night before in between rounds but he'd just silenced her with his mouth, not that she'd minded at all. As far as she was concerned he was dealing with things much better than she'd anticipated despite the few bumps that they'd had.

"It's everything that she wanted?" He kept his eyes on her and she saw his pain. It made her take a step forward, her hand moved up to touch his cheek. "Don't start crying or some shit," he warned.

"It's everything she wanted," Madeline promised. "And I'm not going to cry."

"She'd like that you did what she asked, she'd say that you're a good girl." Happy reached out to pull her close to him. "And you are, you're a real good girl. My girl." He pressed his lips to her forehead. "Come on, got to get a move on."

Madeline nodded as she stepped back and once his back was turned she let out a shaky breath. Before he left on a run she was always scared, so nervous that her manicure would pay the price and a time or two she'd even thrown up but he was always rock solid, never showing any hint of emotion. He'd just given her his equivalent of a long drawn out speech declaring his undying love.

She slipped on a pair of flip flop sandals and followed him out through the club house into the yard. The overall mood was somber, men lined up next to their bikes awaiting the moment that they'd go off into battle.

"You good?" Happy asked as they approached his bike.

"I'm good," Madeline lied and she hoped that it convinced him. "Come back," she told him as she pressed her hands together.

"I will," he closed the distance between them, placed his hands on her hips. "You trust me right?" He knew the look on her face, the little bitch was lying through her teeth. She wasn't good, she was scared. He hated to leave her like that but what choice did he have. This needed to be done, ended once and for all.

"You know I do," Madeline couldn't resist wrapping her arms around him tight. "I love you."

"Love you Girl, give me a kiss."

Madeline shifted so that her lips could reach his, kissed him hard and deep. It was impossible to put everything that she was feeling into it but she knew that he got the point. "I'll be good, stay on the yard and probably won't punch anyone unless that bitch is here somewhere." A dark look flashed over her face at the mere memory of the dark haired woman.

Happy chuckled. "Now that's my fucking Girl," he laughed harder as he smacked her ass and she gasped. He couldn't resist leaning down and capturing her lips once more, his teeth nipping down hard on her bottom lip. "Love you."

He saw tears glimmer in her eyes, she opened her now kiss swollen lips to speak. "Alright! Let's get this done." Jax called out and the rest of the Sons answered back with obvious excitement and impatience. These boys were ready to kick some ass and finally get rid of The Forsaken once and for all.

Madeline moved to stand with the rest of the women and kids as the men got into formation; engines roared as they prepared to pull out of the lot. Several shots rang out and she could only shake her head and smile when she realized it had been her man who'd fired the shots in the air.

She stood there until the last bike was out of the lot. The Nomads who'd stayed behind the keep an eye on the yard until it was all over moved to shut the gates. "Alright." Gemma tossed her cigarette. "No point in standing here doing nothing. Let's get to work."

"Actually, I'm going to take off," Lyla told them.

"What?" Tara frowned.

"I'm taking Piper and going to my mom's for a little while," she explained.

"What about Kenny and Ellie?" Tara asked.

"What about Op?" Gemma demanded.

Madeline watched the scene unfolding with what she was sure was a wide eyed expression. She'd just watched Lyla play tonsil hockey with Opie, sending him off with a smile and a promise to see him later and now she was talking about leaving? "What the..."

"I can't compete with a ghost!" The petite blonde shouted. "I'll never be the perfect Mrs. Winston that she was and I'm sick of trying. I'm done. Piper, come on!" she shouted for her son and dug her keys out of her pocket.

"I knew that you were a dumb bitch, didn't give you credit for being this dumb," Gemma declared as she lit a cigarette.

"Gemma!" Tara admonished her. "Look Lyla, I know shit gets hard. We all know shit gets hard. It gets hard for all of us but those guys, our guys? We love them. We stand by them."

Madeline didn't know what to say. She couldn't imagine just up and leaving Happy for any reason. "Ly, you should give yourself a little time to think about this."

"I have," Lyla snarled the words. "Piper! Let's go! NOW!"

Piper came running over followed by Kenny and Ellie. Both children wore somber expressions that suggested either they'd overheard some of the conversation or had figured things out on their own. Madeline watched a tear roll out of Ellie's eye and something shifted inside of her as she saw Lyla turn to walk away.

"You're not even going to say goodbye to them?" Madeline's question only made Lyla walk faster. The blonde jumped into the car and her son scrambled to get in as well.

"It's okay Maddy." Kenny spoke up with a shrug of his shoulders that made him look eerily like his father. "Can I go play with Juice's PS3?" He addressed the question to Tara.

"Yeah Kenny, come on." Tara held out her hand to him like he was a much younger child but he took it. "What do you say El? Want to come with us?"

The young girl shook her head and turned away from the women. "I've got her," Madeline told the others in a soft voice. She fell into step with the girl as she began to walk. "You want to go somewhere and cry?"

"I don't need to cry," Ellie protested but her eyes were shining with tears that had yet to fall.

"I do Kid, come on." Madeline draped her arm around the girls shoulders. While her heart ached for the Winston family it had already been cut in half by Happy's goodbye to her. She'd sensed that this day was different from the other runs but had never expected that today would be the day he kissed her goodbye like he was never going to see her again.

18 18 18

"This isn't a house, it's a fucking compound." Quinn growled the words as he lowered his binoculars. "Smart move," he glanced over to Jax. "How do we get in?"

"Juice and Kozik are doing some recon now," the President told him. "Looks like there's a patch in the back they couldn't booby trap so well because of the terrain, isn't going to be easy getting through there but it can be done. This ends today."

"I'm ready on my end," Opie spoke up from the back of the van. "Could blow this place off of the mountain if we wanted to." The look on his face suggested that he might enjoy that a little more than normal.

Everyone was on edge, they all wanted this over with. Happy was ready, he had his trusted guns and vest. Get in, kill them all and get out. Go home and prepare with the finality of putting his mother in the ground in the morning. That final step was something that he didn't want to think about but also couldn't get out of his mind.

Now all they needed was for Juice and Kozik to get done so that they could all head up the hill to the house. Happy lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply. "Jax, talk to you a second?"

"Sure Hap, what's up?" Jax moved over to where he stood. Happy motioned for the man to follow him and stepped away the rest of the group.

"Need to be sure that if something happens to me, Mad gets taken care of."

"Of course Hap, she's your Old Lady. Hell, she's your wife too. She's family. We all love that girl," he chuckled. "Some of us even more after last night, that was some beat down she laid on Claire."

"She got pissed," Happy took another long drag off of the cigarette. "Doesn't happen often but when she does..." he shook his head and smiled. "Something happens to me and she's going to go off the rails Brother, she's already lost everything else. This shit with her not working is fucking her up in the head."

"About that, Tara mentioned that the child care center at the hospital is looking for someone." Jax told him. "She thought of Madeline before she mentioned it, which of course is why she mentioned it."

"Madeline isn't a glorified babysitter," Happy told him. It bothered him to see her let go of her career as a teacher so easily especially now that he knew in an indirect way The Club had been part of her losing that piece of herself. If he could go back and kill that little bitch again, he would with a smile.

She'd been a piece of work, twisted and jaded in a way that no teenager should be in a perfect world but the world was so far from perfect. He knew that. Just like he'd known that she was mostly dead inside when he looked in her eyes.

"Nah, this is for some early education shit. I don't know the details but they want teachers not babysitters. Would have mentioned it sooner but this shit happened." Jax lit a cigarette of his own. "Something to talk to her about when we get back. We're all getting back." He spoke with conviction as he eyed the men waiting on the side of the road. Thankfully it was a remote location and no one had passed them because it was painfully obvious they were up to no good.

Happy nodded though he wasn't sure that he had the same level of conviction that his President did, in situations like this lives were lost and not wanting them to be wasn't enough to make that happen. They all knew the possible sacrifice that they'd need to make and were all willing to do so for what they believed in just like the countless soldiers before them.

"I think I see 'em!" Chibs called out, all eyes went to the spot where Kozik and Juice had disappeared into the woods about an hour earlier.

"Get back! Go! Get back!" Kozik shouted as he emerged with Juice hot on his heels. The two men had barely cleared the edge of the woods when an explosion sent them flying forward. The force of the blast shook the ground. Happy managed a strangled curse as he dove for the ground. The scent of smoke and blood filled the air as he pushed back up to his feet, gun drawn against whatever enemy might have been behind the glass.

"Was a fucking landmine!" Chibs shouted as a large tree crashed down effectively blocking the road for them to get back to Charming.

"That tree didn't come down on it's own," Opie rubbed a hand across his face and it came away bloody. "It's too big, had to have been wired up."

"Everyone whole?" Jax called out. "Op?"

"I'm good."

"I'm good." Chibs chimed in. "Smoke's so thick I wouldn't be able to see my dick if I whipped it out."

"I'm whole." Quinn's voice cut through the gray plumes of smoke. "Half of the fucking woods are on fire though."

"Looks like everyone is good," Tig coughed loudly. "Fuck. Let's get in there and end this. I am sick of this shit. Kozik! Can you get us back through? I'm talking to you douche!"

When Kozik still didn't reply Happy felt something sink inside of his stomach, he pushed himself forward though he was sure what he was going to find. He'd seen his oldest friend and Juice fly from the blast, they'd been so close. In a second Quinn was at his side and they moved together through the smoke and now the flying pieces of debris as the woods began to burn in earnest.

18 18 18

Kenny had been slaughtering zombies for the better part of six hours. Madeline wondered if someone shouldn't tell him to step away from the game for a while, rest his eyes or eat something that wasn't a Hot Pocket.

"Hey," Destroyer sat down on the couch next to her. "You doing okay Mrs. Happy?"

She smiled at the large man. "I'm good," and surprisingly it was the truth. A certain level of calm had overtaken her after she and Ellie had shared a good long cry among the stacks of tires on the side of the building. "How'd you get stuck with babysitting duty?"

"I'm a caretaker by nature," he grinned at her. "Truthfully, I volunteered. Figured that the guys would go into this a little easier knowing that I was here." His sheer size made Madeline feel safer. "And I can help the Doc when they get back if she needs me."

"I can help too." Ellie spoke up from the floor where she was stretched out reading a book. "I looked a bunch of stuff up online."

"Yeah?" Destroyer nodded with approval. "That sounds good Kid." All the kids were Kid to him, to most of the guys that weren't Redwood. "What did you look up?"

Madeline smiled and slipped off of the couch as the two began to talk seriously about proper first aid. "I'm going to grab some drinks and food."

"Aunt Maddy, can you bring me a Red Bull?" Kenny questioned.

"What do you think?"

"Aw man, come on Lyla lets me have them."

"That is not the way to convince me Kenny," Madeline shook her head. "I'll bring you some juice." She ignored his grumbling and walked back into the kitchen. If Bobby were to walk in the door at that exact moment, his head would explode. Someone needed to clean and since no one else seemed to be up to the task, she'd do it.

Gemma and Tara were sharing a bottle of wine now that Abel and Thomas were napping. Everyone else had gone into one of the back rooms or out onto the yard. Cabin fever happened pretty early into a lock down even if this one was tighter than most had been. Madeline fixed several sandwiches, poured glasses of juice and set them all on a tray to carry out for the kids.

"You got a real mothering instinct, don't you?" Destroyer observed moments later as the kids were eating and he'd taken a sandwich as well. "You know, I've known Happy for a long time and I never thought that he'd find himself an Old Lady, I'm really glad that he found you."

His words were sweet, Madeline smiled but for some reason her stomach clenched. It took her a minute to realize it was his smile and body language, his words were nice but his wide smile didn't reach his eyes and he was starting to fidget. 'Trust your gut,' it was like she could hear Happy's low scratchy voice in her ear. "Thanks Destroyer, that's real nice of you to say," she continued to smile. "You know, I think that I need a drink."

"That's probably a good idea."

That did it, Madeline was officially freaked as she crossed over to where Gemma and Tara were now playing a game of cards to go with their wine. "Hey," Tara greeted her. "Sit down, we'll deal you in."

"How come no Charming guys stayed with us?"

Gemma looked over at her. "Because this shit is way personal to our guys, none of them wanted to stay behind. That's one of the reasons that we've got Tacoma and the Nomads here. Why?"

"Just wondering," Madeline sat down and lowered her voice. "How well do either of you know any of these guys?"

"Known them all for years," Gemma lowered her cards. "What are you getting at?"

"I don't know, I've got a fucked up feeling."

"We've all got that today," the older woman said dryly. "Have a drink and relax."

"Wait," Tara interjected. "Maddy, did something happen to give you that feeling? You were just having a great time talking to Destroyer. Wait, was it something he said?"

Now Madeline felt foolish for bringing it up but there was no getting that cat back into the bag. "It's just... a feeling, a gut feeling," she stared down at her hands. "I can't shake it." If she thought back she'd had that feeling all day, the feeling that something was going to go seriously wrong.

A sudden commotion outside caught all their attention. "Someone is here." Gemma rose to her feet, her hand slipped inside of her purse and came out with a gun. Both Madeline and Tara stared at her. "What? I believe in being prepared, like a Boy Scout."

"It's good Ladies, it's good." Destroyer told them as he rose to his feet. "Just a couple of late arrivals. Greg and Go Go were up in Canada, took 'em a little extra time to get here."

"Canada?" Tara questioned and shot Madeline a look that she couldn't read. "That's a long trip." She lowered her voice and glanced over at Gemma. "Jax said that they were in Mexico, do not put that gun away."

"Heard that Doc," Destroyer shook his head and in the next second his gun was out and drawn on Gemma. "Going to want to put that down nice and slow Gemma."

"Son of a bitch," Madeline hissed the words. "You bastard. What the hell are you doing?"

"What I have to," he said almost sadly. "Now sit back down. This is going to happen either way, you want the easy way."

**A/N: Decided to save this for the end, hoping that you all enjoyed this. We've got some rough stuff coming up. This is just the beginning of it. You guys are awesome with the reviews/favorites/follows. I'm blown away, SYG has more reviews than I ever expected, more than Finding Home and I don't even know how to thank you all.**

**A very special thanks goes to R3-1 M4y3r for looking over this chapter for me while I had my pre-posting freak out.**


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Happy watched as Jax knelt next to the body, the young President's head was down and his body rigid. This was the first man that he had lost under his command and it was someone who he'd known his entire life.

Bobby had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, caught by a piece of wooden shrapnel

thrown out of the woods by the blast. It had caught him in the neck, he'd gone down quickly and silently.

Quinn and Happy had literally stumbled across him and it had been too late. "Jax," Quinn stepped forward and laid a beefy hand on the younger man's shoulder. "Need to get him to Skeeter, get Kozik to a doctor." The man was in pretty bad shape, his head had hit the pavement and it was bleeding pretty bad.

"Chibs," Jax turned to the Scottish man. "Take Juice with you, get Kozik to Tara and Bobby to Skeeter. The rest of you, we're going in now." His eyes flashed darkly.

"There's no clear way in Jax, not with the fire." Juice told him. "It was tricky in perfect conditions."

"The road can't be booby trapped, screw stealth." Jax looked down at Bobby again. "Everyone be on alert, we've lost too much already." He ran his hand through his hair. "Op, can you blow the gate?"

"Yeah." The Vice President replied without hesitation.

"What the fuck are we waiting for? Let's get it done." Jax growled the words with one final look over to where Chibs and Juice were gently lifting Bobby from the ground.

Happy and Quinn exchanged a look, neither man would go against what the President wanted and they were in, all in.

19 19 19

"There isn't going to be anything easy about the way you go out." Gemma advised Destroyer as she kept her grip on the gun in her hand. "You're dead."

"Put it down Gemma." Clay's familiar voice boomed through the club house.

"Fuck you," Gemma replied.

"Find the kids," Clay ordered the two Nomads standing next to him.

"You son of a bitch," Gemma's hand shook for the first time. "You leave those boys alone." She made a show of lowering the gun and set it down on the table. Next to her Tara stood stiffly and all that Madeline could do was wish that she could suddenly turn into Lara Croft, grab the gun and put all of the threats down without even blinking.

Even if she had her gun, which she didn't, she knew that she'd never be able to do that. She'd never be able to even protect herself.

"The three of you sit." Clay waved his gun at them. "Get everyone else, tie 'em up."

"You got it Boss." The Nomad to Clay's right nodded and pulled off his Sons cut. He dropped it to the floor before walking over it.

"You're not going to get away with this Clay." Tara's voice was surprisingly firm and didn't waver. "No matter what you do here, they'll find you and they'll kill you. If you touch my sons, I'll kill you before they have the chance."

The older man just laughed, the sound once associated with good things for Madeline but she was now sure that it would haunt her dreams. If she ever had dreams again, as she watched the other men with Clay tie up everyone in the clubhouse she confronted the fact that this could very well be the end for all of them. There was nothing stopping the intruders from killing them all and walking away. She didn't even want to think about what happened to the Sons outside who were still loyal.

"There's nothing keeping me from blowing a hole in you right now," Clay pointed out. "So shut your mouth Doctor and sit the fuck down."

Madeline watched as Tara lowered herself into the chair she'd been sitting on. "Do they really need to tie up the kids?" She questioned and Clay's attention snapped to her. "Thomas and Abel are your grandson's Clay, look at how scared they are." When he didn't immediately shoot her she decided to continue. "Kenny and Ellie have been through enough too. Can't we just take them into one of the rooms? They don't need to see whatever is going to happen."

Her request was met with silence by Clay. Madeline caught Destroyer looking at her and he managed a small sad smile. He mouthed the words 'I'm sorry' and she wanted to go over and kick him in the balls. "Take 'em to one of the rooms and lock them in. Don't try anything funny." Clay warned. "And don't take 'em to your Old Man's room."

"I cleaned out Jax's old room a while back, he doesn't need it anymore. Kozik's been staying in there," Tara spoke up meekly. Madeline looked her in the eyes and realized that all of her fight was gone. In less than ten minutes Clay had broken the new Samcro Queen, by the look on his face it seemed that not only did he know it but that he was enjoying it.

"Destroyer, go with her. She tries anything but two in her head and kill one of the kids, your pick."

"Come on guys," Madeline forced herself to keep her voice light. All four kids came to her without hesitation though she could see all their fear. Ellie took her hand and squeezed hard. "It's okay, it's going to be alright," she could only pray that she wasn't lying to them.

19 19 19

It took Opie only minutes to wire the gate, it blew and set off a chain reaction of several landmines going off as debris landed. "Fuck." Quinn scratched his chin. "That certainly took away any surprise we had."

"Time to get it done." Jax started up the winding driveway first and knew that his Brother's would have his back. Happy was to his right, Opie to his left with Quinn right behind him. Clay didn't know what he was in for.

The closer they got to the house the more Happy became convinced that something was wrong, very wrong. First of all, no one had taken a shot at them. There had been no signs of movement and unless there was a hidden underground parking deck, only two bikes were in front of the porch. "Something ain't right," he growled as they came to a stop.

"Like a fucking ghost town," Opie shaded his eyes from the sun. "Trap?"

"If it was a trap, they'd have sprung it already." Quinn observed as he got off of his bike.

"What the fuck?" Jax's face was twisted into a mask of rage. Without another word he got off his bike, took out his gun and started for the door.

"Hold on Man, make sure that shit ain't wired," Opie automatically followed his life long friend.

"Tig, Bowie and Lorca, head around back," Jax had apparently put a handle on his rage because he was as collected as if they were standing outside the club house. Hap and Quinn, with me. The rest of you keep your eyes open. Be ready for anything."

The last thing that they were ready for was to find the house empty except for two dead bodies. "Son of a bitch, that's Frankie Diamonds," Opie stood over the man. "Looks like two shots to the chest."

"Close range," Quinn's voice was calm which only indicated the level of his fury. "Turn that other fucker over, let me see his face." The Nomad President let out a roar. "Fucking Ditch."

"What the fuck Quinn? Didn't you say that they were in Mexico?" Jax roared. "What the fuck are they doing here?"

"No clue Brother, don't look like they're going to talk."

Happy stared at the two men who had been his Brothers, he'd killed with them. Hell, he'd killed for them in order to save their lives. "Fuck does this mean?"

"They turned on the club." The female voice surprised them all.

"Thought you searched upstairs," Jax demanded of Tig.

"I did."

"I was in the attic," the girl explained as she stepped forward. "Hid up there earlier, I got free while this shit was happening but I think these two were the only ones who knew because no one came looking for me."

"Who the fuck are you?" Jax had his gun pointed at her, he wasn't the only one. One wrong more and she'd be torn to pieces by a barrage of bullets.

"Allison. Allison Monroe," she glanced over to Quinn as recognition dawned across his face.

"You're Destroyer's baby sister, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Frankie and GoGo grabbed me a few days ago, brought me here. They flipped, they're not Sons anymore," she took a deep breath, "they're with Clay and they took me to be sure that Destroyer would help them."

"Where are they now?" Jax kept his gun on the girl.

"You can't hurt my brother, please. He's only doing this to keep me safe." Allison pleaded, her eyes locked on Jax. "He loves the club."

"Where the fuck are they now?" Quinn roared the question. "Answer the question or I'll put you down right here or better yet, give Hap a crack at you." The girl paled and began to shake.

"They went to Charming, I'm guessing the club house."

"Get Chibs or Juice on the phone, now!" Jax roared. "They should be close by now," his attention turned to the girl. "Tig, get the girl in the van."

"Tied? Gagged?" He questioned as the girl looked over at him with wide eyes.

"Just in the van." The President replied without any trace of amusement at the raven haired man's obvious attempt to lighten the situation. "We need to get back to Charming."

19 19 19

The kids were quiet as she settled them down on the bed. "Why don't you guys watch a movie? There's plenty of stuff I'm sure that you haven't seen on demand. I'll get you some drinks and snacks."

"We're not hungry." Kenny stared daggers at Destroyer. "My Dad is going to kill you Dude."

"Kenny, let's not make the situation worse. Look, I know that this is scary but we'll figure it out. I will not let anything happen to you, I swear." Madeline leaned down to hug the boy. "I'll get us out of this Kenny."

He pressed his face against her neck. "I've got a knife in my pocket. It's Pop's," he whispered the words.

A glimmer of hope flashed in Madeline's mind, she was marginally better with a knife than a gun but was that enough? No one was really expecting her to do anything. She pressed her lips to Kenny's forehead. "You're a smart boy Kenny, you know that. I need you to watch the other kids for me, okay?" She caught his eye, looked down at his pocket and back up at him.

He nodded. "Sure Aunt Maddy, I can do that."

"Wrap it up." Destroyer told her.

"I just need to use the bathroom."

"Can I go first?" Kenny jumped up. "I don't think I can hold it."

"Go on," she told him. "Unless you'd rather that the boy wet himself Destroyer."

"Go on Kid, make it quick."

"Can I ask why you're doing this?" Madeline questioned as she found a blanket in the closet and shook it out to lay it over Abel and Thomas who were huddled together. They were too young to really understand what was going on except that everyone around them was scared. She could only hope they wouldn't remember this.

"I'm doing what I have to do," he explained.

"You told me once that you loved the Sons."

His face hardened. "Shut up," he looked over when Kenny came out of the bathroom. "Do what you need to do."

Madeline shut herself in the bathroom and sighed. It took her only a second to notice that the shower curtain was tugged back, which could have been Kozik being lazy after his shower but she had to hope that Kenny had said he needed the bathroom so that he could slip her Piney's knife. "I'm buying that kid a PS3," she whispered to herself as she picked up the knife from the edge of the tub.

It wasn't a small knife, actually she was amazed that Kenny could have concealed it on his small body. That meant that she should be able to conceal it just as easily. "Hurry up in there!" Destroyer banged on the door.

Madeline actually did have to use the facilities so she did and made a loud production of washing her hands. "Sorry, I just can't whip it out like you can."

He took a step closer to her, his eyes meeting hers. "They've got my sister," he whispered the words. "She's only a kid, just nineteen years old, the things that they said that they'll do to her... I'm doing what I have to do to keep her alive."

"I'm sorry to hear that," and she was sorry but if he was going to do what he had to do than she was going to do the same.

He moved even closer. "Cooperate with Clay, give him what he wants and I doubt that he's going to hurt the rest of you."

"And what is it that he wants?"

"Gemma and Jax, they're his family. They betrayed him. He can't forgive that," Destroyer was closer to her than any man had been since Happy. "They're all he really wants and maybe that Mexican who's been banging his Old Lady on the regular. The rest of you... if you were to not make waves..." he glanced over at the kids. "It'd be better for them."

"I'm not trying to make waves. I just want the kids out of the way, they're too young for this." Madeline's mind was going in so many different directions as she played out several scenarios to see what one would end the best. So far, every single one ended in blood and death. "I'm sorry about your sister, I really am. I hope that she gets out of this okay. I hope that we all do because I've got to bury my mother in the morning." It might not have been the best idea to snap at him but she was at the end of her rope. In fact, it was taking all of her self control to not take out the knife and stick it in his throat.

"Eve was a good woman," he spoke softly, and again she saw a sadness in him. His betrayal was taking a toll on him. It gave Madeline a spark of hope that he'd make a mistake, give her an opening.

"Thank you," she said stiffly. "I need to get the kids something to eat and drink."

"Don't try anything," he warned her.

19 19 19

Chibs lit a cigarette as he turned in to the lot at Teller-Morrow, the path of the van was obstructed by the gates. "Jesus Christ, why is no one out here? Lazy fucks." He leaned on the horn, long and hard.

"Can't believe this shit Man." Juice was slumped down in the seat next to him. "You alright back there Kozik?"

"Fucking great, never better," the man replied with a weak laugh. "Kind of pissed that I'm missing out on the shit kicking up at the cabin."

"Teach ya to land on your head the next time," Chibs smiled because if Kozik was up to chuckling it was a good sign, his hard head had served him well apparently. "Mary Mother of God, what the hell is taking them so long?" He leaned on the horn again.

The door to the club house opened. "Finally." Juice grumbled. "Hope Tara's got everything that she needs. "Oh fuck. Fuck. Fuck."

"What is it Juicey?" Chibs followed the younger man's stare. "No. No Brother, that is not good."

Both could only stare at the sight of Clay standing there, Tara in front of him. His gun was pressed to the back of her head as he marched her across the lot. "Not opening the gate," he called out. "Get the little prince here, tell him that his wife's life depends on it."

"Is that Clay? How fucking hard did I hit my head?" Kozik stuck his head between the two seats.

"Call Jax Juice, right now." Chibs snarled the words. He got out of the van. "Let the girl go Clay, she's not a part of this."

"We both know that she is." Clay replied. "Little hot out here, we'll be back inside when the prince gets here. Tell him not to take too long, I've got an itchy finger right about now."

19 19 19

Madeline was looking for any chance at getting everyone out of the situation but she just couldn't seem to think of something that would work. She and Gemma were sitting quietly at the table, what else could they do? Clay had grabbed Tara by the hair and dragged her outside at the sound of a horn.

"That was the van," Gemma said in an undertone. "Someone is back. That's good, real good."

Madeline wasn't quite so sure that it was because there was no sound of battle, nothing to indicate that whoever was back was here to mount a full blown rescue. "We've got to get the kids out of here," she hissed to Gemma. "Especially if this is going to turn into a full blown gun fight."

"You think that I don't know that?" the woman snapped as she took the last of many cigarettes out of her pack. "Those kids are my family, my blood! Don't tell me what we need to do for them."

It was obvious that the former Queen was frazzled, more frazzled than Madeline had expected. She'd thought that Gemma would stay strong but then again there was only so much that a person could take, perhaps she'd just reached her limit.

"Party is about to get started," Clay announced as he dragged Tara back inside. "Everyone get ready, I want the entrance covered."

His minions sprang to life, the two traitorous Nomads headed out the door and the three men that he'd brought with him began to check the weapon stash. Destroyer looked between Clay and the women. "You want me to keep an eye on them?"

"Nah, head up to the roof. I think it's time you gave everyone a taste of what Uncle Sam used to pay you for." Clay ordered. "I can handle the little ladies."

"I need to check on the kids," Madeline told him.

"Just a little mother hen, huh? Odd that you'd pick the one son of a bitch who should never be a father. The things his hands have done, well those hands don't deserve to hold a child."

"Fuck you," she replied without thinking, not taking into account the possible consequences of saying such a thing to the men who seemed to hold all the cards at the moment. "Those hands will hopefully be the ones to drain the life from your pathetic body."

Clay moved forward with speed that defied his age and his hand lashed out with strength that she didn't expect because of his arthritis. Madeline heard her neck crack as her head bounced to the side and back again. He hit her once more and she was certain that she felt her cheek bone shatter.

Pain radiated through her, she tried to get up from the floor but she was too dazed. Dazed enough that she thought she was imagining Gemma coming up behind the man but then there was a loud crash, glass rained down to the floor and Clay soon followed.

"Fuck with my family, I don't think so." Gemma still had the neck of the bottle she'd bashed her husband over the head with. "Get the hell up, we probably don't have enough time."

Tara swooped forward and took Clay's gun. "Threaten me? Threaten my kids? I hope that you rot in hell you son of a bitch." She braced her wrist with her other hand but when it came to squeezing the trigger there was no follow through. For a moment she just stood there but Gemma stepped forward.

"Leave it Baby, leave it for Jax."

"The two of you should get the kids ready to get out of here," Madeline swayed as she got to her feet but she was proud to be able to stand. Her cheek was throbbing. "Find a phone, call the guys and tell them what they're up against. We've still got the guys outside to worry about. There's only two doors in and out of here, right?"

"The front and back plus the roof access hatch, they can all be locked from the inside." Gemma nodded slowly. "Smart bitch. Tara, go to the kids."

"I'll get the roof access hatch," Madeline told her as she slipped Piney's knife from her pocket. "Kenny let me borrow it," she offered in explanation.

"John had the same knife," Gemma's expression went soft and wistful for a minute. "Pretty sure he gave that one to the old coot himself." Her expression hardened once more. "Stop in Tig's room on your way back Maddy, get some of that rope he's so fond of using on crow eaters so we can tie Clay up."

19 19 19

Juice threw down the prepaid in disgust. "He's not answering. None of them are."

"Could be they're riding, can't hear the phones." Kozik was worse for wear, leaned back against the van wall. He knew that he needed to get to a doctor soon but he couldn't bring himself to say anything, there were bigger fish to fry.

"Could be that they're all dead already." Chibs grumbled as he watched Destroyer take his position on the roof. "Don't bother getting down Lads, if he wants us dead we will be. We're like ducks sitting on a frigging pond here."

19 19 19

Madeline knew that she should have just locked the roof hatch and gone back to Tig's room to scar herself mentally while searching for the rope but as she ran her fingers over the lock she glanced down at the knife in her hand.

The night that Destroyer had stayed with Eve she'd had the chance to talk to him a little. He'd spoken of his time in the Marine's fondly and while he'd never come straight out and said it she'd realized that he'd done work that most men would have refused. He'd been a killer. Maybe it was her time with Happy but she'd just been able to sense it.

And now a trained killer sat on the roof no doubt armed with whatever he would need to take the life of anyone within his sights. If the guys were on the way that meant that Happy would be within his sights and there was no way that she could chance her man being taken out by a traitor behind a long range rifle.

"Destroyer?" She called out as she pushed the hatch open. "Don't shoot, please God don't shoot," her heart was pounding hard in her chest as she slipped the knife back into her pocket. She was going to need to get close, really close and then act without hesitation. "Clay sent me up to see if you need anything."

He didn't seem to be suspicious of her statement as he turned to look at her. He was set up and ready to fire, barrel of the gun resting on the edge of the roof. "I'm fine," he replied. "Why did he send you?"

"Guess he's more interested in Gemma and Tara, just like you said." Madeline took several steps forward. "Do you really have to do this? Can't you just walk away?"

"I'm real sorry this is happening to you Maddy, I like you. I really do." He lowered the gun and rose to his feet. "But my sister, she's everything to me. I have to do this."

"I know, I understand as strange as that may sound." She took another step closer to him. "I'm really sorry that it had to be this way." She was close enough now to smell the cinnamon of the gum that he was chewing. Her hand closed around the knife. It was now or never. "I'm just doing what I have to do."

19 19 19

"The fuck?" Chibs frowned deeply at the sight of Madeline appearing on the roof even as he heard the familiar rumble of bikes approaching from behind them. "Bloody Hell." If Happy saw his girl with the trained killer on the roof than he'd try and take the entire yard on himself, of that he had no doubt. He got out of the van, moved quickly around to the back.

"What have we got?" Jax demanded.

"Clay's inside, has the girls and kids and I don't know how many others. Five guys on the ground outside, one on the roof. Caught a glimpse of Greg the Peg and Destroyer, the fucker has turned them."

"Turned Frankie Diamonds and Ditch too." Jax told him shortly. "I'm going in, Clay wants this to be me and him, it'll be me and him."

Happy was ready to follow Jax in or stay depending on what his President wanted but then movement on the roof caught his eye. Everything inside of him froze and he could only watch as Madeline moved closer to Destroyer. What the fuck was she doing?

He got his answer as the sun glinted off the steel in her hand. He nearly shouted out, was she crazy? What the hell was she thinking? Without his mind even realizing it, his hand went to his gun. He had to get in there, had to do something as he watched the larger man stumble back. She'd stabbed him but he wasn't going down.

"Ram the fucking gate!" Jax ordered Chibs. "Get us in, now."

19 19 19

The sound of bikes gave Madeline the courage to do what she needed to do. She moved even closer to Destroyer, pulled her hand back as discretely as possible and then moved her hand forward as fast and hard as she could manage. The blade slid into the flesh of his stomach, she expected him to fall to the ground immediately but instead there was only a horrifying moment where he stared down at the knife protruding from his abdomen.

"Little bitch," he roared the word and sent Madeline flying toward the edge of the roof with one well placed smack to her already shattered cheek.

Her mind went to Happy, knowing that he was watching her. She wanted to scream for him, to apologize but there was no time before everything went black.

**A/N: Please don't throw things. I had to cut the chapter off here because it needed to be split in two. The second half will be up by the end of the weekend. Also, forgive any errors because I was so excited to get this out to you I'm sure I overlooked something.**

**Thanks again everyone for the support. I can't even begin to tell you how amazing you all are. **


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: **Okay, here's the rest of the chapter. I couldn't leave you guys hanging for too long. As you can see from the length of this part, I really needed to split them. Your support has been amazing! Things with The Forsaken will be wrapped up in this chapter and we'll move on to the rest of Happy and Mad's tale. Enjoy!

**Chapter 20**

Happy watched Madeline fly towards the edge of the roof. In his mind he flashed to the worse, her going over the edge. Her body falling to the hard concrete below, her life gone. He stood unable to move, unable to do anything but watch. It had been a long time since he felt fear but it was what gripped him. There was relief when she didn't go over the edge but with the way that she fell he knew that there was still a good chance that the fucker had killed her.

He heard Chibs swear, saw the man jump back into the van. "Hold on Laddies, this is going to get bumpy." The van lunged forward, hit the gate and broke through.

Faced with the full force of the Sons, even Kozik had managed to get out of the van, the members of The Forsaken showed the one thing they shouldn't have. They showed fear. That was the only opening that they needed. It was not going to be a gun battle, they were in Charming after all. It was going to be a brawl. "Hap, with me!" Jax called out as he ran towards the club house door. It opened before they got there, Gemma standing there with Destroyer behind her.

The turn coat Nomad had a gun to the older woman's head. "Let me go and no one gets hurt." He told them. "I never wanted to do this Brothers but Clay has my sister, said that they would kill her if I didn't play inside man. I had no choice, no choice at all."

Happy didn't even look over at Jax, the two men were on the same page. Destroyer had signed his death certificate the second that he'd chosen to go with Clay, regardless of the reason. He could have come to the club, explained what happened and they'd have come up with a solution but instead he'd taken matters into his own hands. Without hesitation Happy pulled one of his guns and fired.

He'd fired true, the bullet entered Destroyer's forehead. The blow back sprayed across Gemma but she didn't even seem phased. She moved forward, into her sons arm. "Clay's in there, I knocked him out with a bottle."

The President nodded at his mother. "Go," he told Happy but the man was already running down the hall.

Happy reached the roof access hatch and pushed it open. He pulled himself up and his hand came away covered with blood, Destroyer's blood. Madeline had got him good, it was possible the wound would have killed him but he couldn't take the chance. In different circumstances he would have taken intense pleasure in torturing the man, could see it in his mind but there was nothing more important to him than getting to his girl.

There was more blood on the roof, dark red droplets almost leading a trail right to where she lay. Her eyes were closed, her face broken. Happy dropped to his knees next to her. "Mad! Wake the fuck up," he watched his trembling hands without really seeing them as he reached to feel her pulse.

It was there, stronger than it should have been judging by all the blood. "Mad. Baby, come on." Gently he moved her so that she was flat on her back. "Mad. Come on!" He couldn't be sure how long he yelled at her for, his hands moving gently over her battered face. No matter what he did she still didn't wake up.

"Hap?" Chibs was at his side. "Let me have a look at her," he spoke gently as he knelt down. "Jax has Clay, him and the rest are being loaded in the van. Gonna take them to the cabin, sort this all out up there away from the prying eyes of the Sherriff Department."

Happy moved back and let Chibs lean over her. He looked out into the yard, saw that the van was backed up to the door. As he watched it began to move forward no doubt fully loaded and ready for the trip to the cabin.

"We need to get her downstairs to Tara, not sure that she needs a hospital. The Doc should be able to do everything here," Chibs told him. "I'll help you get her down."

"I've got her," Happy moved forward and gently picked her up from the ground. Getting down the ladder while carrying her wasn't going to be easy but he could do it. She was his and he was going to take care of her. And when she woke up and he knew that she was going to be fine, he was going to kick her ass into next week for going after Destroyer. What the hell had she been thinking?

"Jesus Christ," Chibs swore as he looked over to the gate and saw several marked cars and the Sheriff's truck pulling into the yard.

20 20 20

Sheriff Eli Roosevelt would never understand Charming, the brawl that had broken out at the Teller-Morrow lot had gone unreported to the Sherriff's substation by all the neighbors and citizens passing by. It was only dumb luck that his own wife had driven past and seen what was going on but apparently she'd caught the tail end of it because when he arrived at the yard it was nearly deserted.

"Something I can do for you Sheriff?" Gemma Teller-Morrow looked a little worse for wear as she stepped out of the office connected to the garage.

"Want to tell me what happened here?"

"Just a little of boys being boys," she shrugged her shoulders and lit a cigarette. "Nothing for you to concern yourself about."

"Mind if I take a look around?"

"What if I do?"

"I had a report of a violent altercation here Mrs. Morrow, I was just being polite by asking." Without another word to the woman he turned and walked into the clubhouse. There were several people inside, he'd expected more. "Dr. Knowles." He nodded to the woman who was putting her medical degree to use stitching up Herman Kozik. "What happened here?"

"I fell," the man replied.

"Tara!" Chibs came out of the hallway. "Leave Kozik, need ya to take a look at Maddy. She's in bad shape. Son of a bitch," he swore when he saw the Sheriff. "We've got company Hap."

Happy stepped into the room cradling Madeline in his arms, he glared over at the Sheriff but said nothing to the man.

"What the hell happened here?" Roosevelt demanded as he took in Madeline's battered face, the blood that had started to dry on her hands.

Happy snorted in response and moved over to put Madeline down on the pool table. "Tara."

"Let me look at her." Tara stepped forward.

"Hands up Lowman!" Sheriff Roosevelt barked out as he drew his gun at the sight of the .45 still resting in the bikers holster. "Lace them behind your head and go down on your knees. Do it now."

"The fuck is your problem?" Happy felt his control on his temper snap.

"That gun you're carrying, I'm damn sure that you don't have a license for it as a convicted felon and I'm pretty sure that you're the one who beat that girl so badly. Dr. Knowles, step back from her. I'm calling an ambulance just as soon as I've got Mr. Lowman in cuffs."

Happy looked over at Madeline, even with the screaming she was still just lying there, still out for the count. "I didn't put a fucking hand on her. Should break your jaw for even suggesting it."

"Now we can add threatening a police officer to your charges. You know the drill Lowman, do it." Roosevelt seemed to be bolstered by the three deputies who walked into the room. "Get me an ambulance here immediately," he snapped at them. "What do you say Lowman? Want to resist?"

It was Quinn who stepped out of nowhere and caught Happy by the arm when he would have lunged at the Sheriff. He understood the urge to beat the shit out of the smug man because he was feeling it himself. Say what you wanted about Happy but he'd have cut his own cock off before he raised a hand to his girl in anger. "Easy Brother, don't make it worse. Need to get you out so that you can take care of her."

"You watch her, you make sure that she's safe," Happy made the request half expecting that his friend would refuse. After all he knew how Quinn felt about her, he should have asked Kozik but it would have been hard to ask the man anything when he was half passed out at the bar.

"I got her Brother, I'll take care of her."

"I'll go with you," Happy told Roosevelt, his eyes flashing darkly. "Just give me a minute with her first."

Roosevelt stepped forward, pulled a plastic bag from his pocket and used it to remove the gun from the holster. "You've got two minutes Lowman, probably the last two minutes you're going to get to spend with her not behind glass. Make 'em count."

He'd have rather not have had an audience but Happy stepped forward anyway. He ran his hand over the side of Madeline's face. "You better wake your ass up Girl, got things to do tomorrow," the fact that he wouldn't be there for his mother's funeral was just another kick to the gut. He leaned down and brushed his lips against her bruised lips. "Love you."

When he stepped back he laced his hands behind his head, went down to his knees and didn't make a sound as Roosevelt jerked his hands behind his back and cuffed him. He listened to his rights as he was led out the door to one of the waiting cars.

20 20 20

It was a steady beep that woke her and the pounding in her head. Madeline's eyes opened and she blinked at the sterile white ceiling tiles. It was a hospital room. She looked down and saw various tubes in her arms.

"About time you woke up," Quinn's voice made her jump. "Take it easy, you're going to be alright."

"Where's Happy?" It was the first thing that she could think of. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Roosevelt locked him up," the large man didn't mince words. "Thinks that he did this to you and found his gun on him."

"Locked up?" Alarm surged through Madeline. "He can't be locked up, we've got the funeral tomorrow and he can't be locked up."

"Well he is so you're going to have to deal with that." Quinn looked down at her. "Gonna need to talk to the cops, get it out of their head that he's the one who did this. That'll be one charge down." He didn't voice that her protesting he hadn't hurt her might not be enough to stop the charges. The prosecuting attorney could decide to pick up the charges of domestic violence on their own.

"Get them here or get me to them," Madeline sat up and instantly regretted doing so.

"Lay the fuck back down, going to hurt yourself. They'll be here. Don't you worry about that. Question is, what are you going to tell them when they get here."

"I'm not stupid," she narrowed her eyes at him but did lay back down. Immediately she felt less like throwing up from the spiking pain or screaming. "I don't know who it was, some guy who wandered into the yard. I asked if he needed help and then he was all on me. I don't remember what happened after that."

"Think they're going to buy that?"

"It's the truth, isn't it?" She glared at him. "We both know that you don't like me Quinn, so what the hell are you doing here?"

"My Brother asked me to keep an eye on you, that's what I'm going to do." He settled back in the chair. "What about the blood on your hands?"

"They should look for someone who is scratched up apparently I must have fought back. Jesus, they really think that Happy put me here?" Tears gathered in her eyes. "Get the doctor, I don't want to be here."

"You got a broken face, a bruised shoulder and they're worried about possible swelling on your brain. I let you walk out of here and I might as well just eat my own gun. You're staying right where you are. So stop bitching, shut your eyes and sleep or something."

"You are the most comforting visitor ever," she sighed. "Is he going to be okay?"

"He'll be alright, ain't his first time. Won't be his last."

"I know that he can hold his own but alone on the inside? Does he have protection?"

"Nero's taking care of it." Gemma's paramour was beyond outraged at what had happened while he was taking care of a little problem with a supplier in Mexico, he'd arrived back in Charming when the dust was settling. "His boys will have Hap's back."

"Good, that's good." Madeline wanted to say more, to ask more but her head was pounding so hard that she couldn't even think straight. Despite wanting to stay up, she felt her eyes closing and she let them.

Quinn watched as she slipped back into sleep. He would have much rather have been at the cabin with the others taking care of what remained of The Forsaken but he'd given his word and he wouldn't break it for anything.

Once he was sure that she was asleep he leaned forward and pulled the cover up over her. "Guess you aren't all bad Little Girl, got some balls on you. You'd do anything for Hap and that goes a long way with me." Quinn leaned back in the chair and shut his eyes, might as well sleep while she was.

20 20 20

The last person Happy expected to see walk into the visit room was Della Edmond. "Where's Rosen?" He'd seen the woman work, Madeline had lost everything because she couldn't lawyer her way around the school board.

"Out of town, I'm here as your representation Mr. Lowman."

"Maybe I should just represent myself," he suggested.

"Listen to me, you need me. Look, I fucked up with Madeline's case. I know that I did but I'm working to fix that."

"What's that mean?"

"It means that I'm on the verge of filing a civil suit against the Charming Board of Education on her behalf, a discrimination suit because they were biased against her due to her lifestyle choice." The lawyer looked just a little scared as he glared at her. "They'll settle, won't want it dragged out in public. She might have lost her job but she'll get a nest egg that'll hold her for a long time."

Happy considered the information. "You make her hurt again and I'll snap your neck."

The lawyer paled beneath her spray tan. "Duly noted," she cleared her throat. "Now, can we talk about your case?" He nodded and she opened up the folder in front of her. "Here's the situation, there's no disputing that the gun was yours as it was on your person at the time of your arrest. If this was your first offense, you'd be able to get off with a fine and probation but it's not your first time. If it goes to trial, you're looking at a sentence between five and ten years. If you plead guilty, we're looking at less than five and possible parole for good behavior."

"I look like a good behavior candidate to you?"

"Not really but that's on you. The domestic violence charges are a bit trickier, Madeline's given her statement to the police and it has been confirmed by Gemma Teller and Tara Knowles. They now know that an unknown assailant came onto the property at Teller-Morrow and assaulted her. I don't believe that the state will pick up the charges."

Happy nodded. "She out of the hospital?"

"Signed out against medical advice," Della told him. "She's staying with Jax and Tara tonight so the doctor can keep an eye on her."

"Good," Happy decided and was glad to know where she was in case he got the chance to make a phone call. Most of the deputies were douches but there were a couple left over from Unser's reign that had always been decent. "Make the deal."

Surprise registered on Della's face. "You don't want to talk to her about it first?"

Happy shook his head. There was nothing to talk about. Ideally he'd do no time but if that wasn't in the cards he'd gladly take five years with a chance to get out earlier over five to ten with no chance. "Make the deal."

20 20 20

"Quit hovering Tara, I'm fine." Madeline looked over at the doctor. "How are the boys?"

"They're better than I thought they'd be, all things considered. I need to thank you for all that you did to keep them safe. I should have done more but I was just..."

"Hey, I can not even imagine being in the situation you were. Don't go there," she leaned back against the pillows.

"Tara," Jax appeared at the door. "I need to talk to Madeline alone for a minute."

Madeline felt her stomach tighten at Jax's serious expression. Tara left the room with a promise to be back in to check on her. "Just say it Jax."

"I just got off the phone with the lawyer," he sat down on the edge of the bed. "She went to see Hap, he's taking the deal."

Quinn had explained the deal to her earlier and she'd known that he was going to take it. She would have urged him to if he asked her opinion. She didn't want to lose him to the justice system for any amount of time but the deal meant that it would be less time. "Okay," her voice caught with the word.

"Listen to me Maddy, it's going to be hard but we will be there for you every single step of the way. You understand that?" Jax reached out to take her hand as she nodded and tears began to fall from her eyes.

"Can I see him?"

"He'll be transferred tomorrow, you'll be able to see him after a few days. I'll have Tara bring the phone in because he might be able to call. Quinn said that the doctor talked to you at the hospital and you were really upset after, do you want to talk about it?"

"I need to talk to Happy first."

"That's fair enough. You need anything else? Quinn's here too, you are never going to be alone Maddy, you don't have to be scared."

"Right now, I just want to be alone."

"Okay," Jax rose to his feet. "I'll shut the door. You just give a shout if you need anything. I'll hang onto the phone, bring it to you if he calls."

"Thanks," Madeline replied and waited for him to leave the room. The second that the door was shut she let the tears stinging her eyes begin to fall. Happy was in jail, staying in jail. She was a god damn prison wife! If she could kill Clay and the rest of The Forsaken again, she gladly would but that wouldn't happen.

Quinn had filled her in, more than she'd expected, on what had happened to the men once they'd reached the cabin. The only survivor from the fiasco was Allison, Destroyer's sister had been innocent in it, able to explain to them things that the men had been foolish enough to let her overhear.

They'd turned Destroyer with threats of raping and maiming the pretty young girl who he had raised from the age of four when their parents had finally succumbed to their meth addiction. He'd worked as hard as he could to keep her away from drugs and anything else that would push her off her path, the path that he had been on. Allison was now a second year medical student.

She'd go back to her life, alone because Happy had put a bullet through her only families head. Madeline hoped that she could get past it and never feel the need to seek revenge because if she ever came back to Charming to screw with her family, she was going to die bloody.

Madeline cried until she was sure that she had no more tears to give. She curled up the best she could in the bed, shut her eyes and waited for Jax to return with the phone. It was a sleepless night and when the sun finally peaked over the horizon in the morning she was still awake.

Slowly she got out of the bed, there was no more time to lay around and feel sorry for herself and her situation. She shuffled out of the room and down the hall to the living room. "Hey," Tara smiled at her.

"Can you take me home? I need to get clothes for the funeral."

"Maddy, Skeeter can set everything up for tomorrow. It can give you some more time to..."

"No," her tone left no room for argument. "Ma didn't want things drawn out. Happy wouldn't want it either."

"I'll take you," Quinn said from the couch as he set his coffee cup down. "You up for riding or do you need a cage?"

"Cage," she looked over at him. "Wouldn't want Hap to get out and have to kill you because I was riding bitch on your bike."

Quinn smirked, "Smart."

20 20 20

The turn out for the funeral was impressive, Madeline watched as the Charming, Tacoma and Nomad charters all paid their respects to the woman. Other charters had showed up to and she was sure it was because of what happened yesterday more than the funeral but it gave her a warm feeling that they'd come all the same.

Happy would have been pleased with everything. Skeeter had followed her instructions and all of Eve's wishes were granted. Once everyone was gone and there was only the cremation to follow she found herself alone in the room with the casket.

She stroked Eve's hair, straightened the neck of the dress that she'd chosen and knelt next to her. "I know that we weren't family long Ma, but you were more of a mother to me than mine ever was. I love you. And I remember what you asked me, I'll take care of him. I'll always take care of him and this shit doesn't change anything. Locked up or not, he's mine and I'm not letting him go." She leaned in and brushed her lips against the woman's cheek.

Quinn watched from the door, not wanting to disturb the moment and couldn't help but wonder what she whispered in the woman's ear before stepping back from the casket. "Maddy," it was the first time he'd ever called her by her nickname. "Come on, got a surprise for you."

20 20 20

Happy looked over at Della Edmond. "Thank you," the words were hard for him to say but he needed to say it. He didn't know what strings she'd managed to pull but when the guard opened the door and let Madeline in the room he lost his ability to do anything but stare at his wife.

Her face was a mess, the bruises had darkened slightly and he could see how swollen her cheek was. She wore a sedate black dress and heels, appropriate clothing for the funeral she'd just come from.

Madeline gave the guard one glance and then moved forward into his arms. "Shh." Happy's arms wrapped around her. "Easy Girl, we've just got a few minutes."

"I love you. I love you. I love you." Her hands dug into his back, it was so strange to see him in the bright orange garb and not his cut.

"I love you," he pressed his lips to her temple. "You okay?"

"Not really but I'll be fine," she let out a weak laugh. "You mad?"

"Nah Mad, I'm not." He had been but seeing her made it all fade away. "Don't you do some dumb shit like that again though."

"I promise, I'll leave the dumb shit to you from now on."

"Smart ass. Everything went okay today?"

"Yes, without a hitch but there's something I need to talk to you about."

Happy braced himself for her to tell him that no matter how she loved him this was all too much for her to take. "Say it."

"I love you," Madeline's hands moved up to cup his face. "When they took me to the hospital, the doctors ran some tests and..."

"Say it," he repeated with a growl in his voice. What the fuck had the doctor's told her? What could it be that had her looking up at him with such fear in her eyes? Was she sick? The idea that she had cancer or some shit made his stomach clench. No, it couldn't be that. There was no way that he could lose the woman he loved the way that he'd lost his mother.

"Two more minutes," the guard interjected.

"I'm pregnant Hap." Madeline watched his face for a reaction but she saw none. "Happy?"

"They sure?" He questioned as emotions he didn't have the name for rolled through him. Madeline nodded. "Fuck."

Madeline just remained in his arms, at least his grip on her hadn't loosened. Part of her had feared that he would just push her completely away. She took no offense to his muttered curse, it was pretty much the reaction that she expected. If the clock wasn't ticking on the time they were allowed to spend together she would have been content to just not say anything else. "Do you want me to... you know... take care of it?"

"No." The word came out as almost a shout. "Fuck no," he exhaled deeply. "I'm sorry that I'm in here."

"I know," Madeline pressed her lips to his. "But we'll figure it out, I love you Happy Lowman. I'm your Old Lady and wife and nothing is going to change that or push us apart. Nothing in the world."

"Time's up," the guard looked a little embarrassed to be breaking up the moment. "Sorry but they said ten minutes."

Happy glared at the man but nodded his head. "You've got to go Mad. Be a few days before I get my privileges to call you and shit, couple weeks for the visits. You gonna be good?" He reached out to press his hand to her still flat stomach.

"That depends, you still love me?"

"Fuck yeah Mad, fuck yeah."


	21. Chapter 21

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

It didn't take Madeline long to realize that she'd forgotten what life was like without Happy. It was odd to be home all day and all night and be alone, though she wasn't really alone because it seemed that every Son in Charming found a reason to look in on her now and then. Gemma, Tara and Luann seemed to have worked out a schedule of who would drop by to keep her company.

She'd established a routine, once a week she made the drive to see Happy and they spoke once a day. It had been two months, three weeks and five days since he'd been taken away from her and she still couldn't sleep at night. Luann had been the only one to really understand that and had shown up one day with a big bulky body pillow wearing a Samcro shirt.

The gesture had made her cry, honestly everything made her cry these days. Tara and her doctor both said that it was from her hormones and that she was getting off easy because she didn't have any real issues with morning sickness. It didn't feel like getting off easily, it felt like being sad all of the time except when she was mad. Happy would get such a kick out of her temper, she really wished that he could see it.

Her hand moved to her stomach, she could already feel the difference. She'd never had a flat stomach but now it protruded softly, some women were blessed with not showing their pregnancy and apparently she wasn't one of them. Of course that could have something to do with the fact that she ate more than she ever had.

Madeline continued to stroke her stomach as she eyed the clock. It was almost quarter past three which meant that the Winston kids would be arriving at her door any minute. The school was only a few minute walk and with Lyla gone she'd offered to keep an eye on them after school. Really it worked for all of them, Opie didn't have to worry about the kids home alone and they were a great help to Madeline.

Today Kenny was going to tackle mowing the yard, the grass was starting to get out of hand and Ellie wanted to look at the flower seed catalogs Madeline had ordered so she could pick out what would look best in the front of the house.

She was thinking about the kids when the phone rang. "Hello?" It took several seconds for the call to connect, she recognized the electronic clicks and smiled. "Hey Hap."

"Hey Mad," his gravelly voice filled her with happiness. "You good?"

"I'm great Hap, just about to figure something out for dinner for me and the kids. They should be here any minute."

"How's that working out?" When she'd asked him if it was okay that she offer to help out Opie, he'd agreed immediately.

"It's going good, really good. Helps me forget to miss you for a few hours," she sighed and leaned against the wall. "Della called me today, said that the reports are you're doing well and staying out of trouble."

His response was a chuckle. If only she knew how hard it was for him to control himself, "Yeah, I'm getting by."

"Eleven months and one week if you keep behaving."

"I'm going to Mad, I promise. How's the hitch hiker?"

She still didn't remember how he'd started calling their baby the hitch hiker but it had stuck. "Getting bigger, I've got a belly now and not my normal I need to work out more belly," she stared down at it. "I mailed a bunch of pictures the other day," a grin crossed her face, "Luann actually took them for me so you might want to be alone when you open them."

Happy let out a low growl. "I am so fucking tired of taking care of my own shit."

"You and me both," she began to laugh as he growled again. "Quit that, it makes it worse for me."

"Alright, alright." She heard him sigh. "When's the next doctor appointment?"

"I go the day after tomorrow."

"Who's taking you?"

"I'm taking myself."

"Ask someone to go with you, one of the girls."

"I can't ask them to take off every time that I've got an appointment," she pointed out. "It's just a check up."

"Ask someone to go with you," he repeated. "Jax come to see you? He'll have an envelope for you."

There had been an envelope every week, Happy's share of whatever the club had earned. At first she'd tried to protest being given the money but Quinn had given her what she now called his 'glare of death' and she'd let the protest die. Truthfully the money came in handy, her savings was pretty much gone and she refused to touch the money that Eve had left them in her will.

"They were in Indian Hills, I think that they got back today. I'll get it from him," she'd need it to pay the rent. "I've been thinking that maybe I should look for a smaller place."

"Smaller? You mean cheaper?"

"Yes," she said and bit down on her bottom lip. "At least until you're home, it would save some..."

"No," Happy barked the word. "You stay in the house, in our house."

"The rent is..."

"I'll take care of it."

"I'm just..."

"I said that I'll take care of it Mad."

"Okay," she said simply. "I was just trying to help."

"Baby, I'll take care of everything. You trust me?"

"You know that I trust you, you don't have to ask that."

"Then listen to me, stay right where you are. Juice hooked up the security system right?"

"Yes, I set it off like twice a day and the call center is on the phone in minutes."

"Good, make sure that you always set it." Happy told her, he'd tell Quinn next time they spoke to do some spot checks. "Quinn been around?"

"Not since the last time that he took me up to see you, he said he's in Las Vegas but all of the guys are looking in on me."

"Good," Happy replied. "You coming up this weekend?"

"Of course I am, I wouldn't miss it for the world," she knew that the question about the visit meant that his telephone time was nearly up. "You've got to go?"

"Yeah Baby," he told her. "Fucking love you Girl. Pet the hitch hiker for me."

"Our baby is not a puppy to be petted!" she protested, as she always did. "But I will, and I love you so much Hap."

"Be good." His voice was more gruff than she was used to.

"You too," she hoped that he heard her but the call ended so quickly she couldn't be sure. With a sigh she replaced the cordless phone on the counter. Only four more days to their next visit.

21 21 21

"Quinn?" Madeline looked up from the magazine that she was flipping through when a dark shadow covered her.

"He told you to bring someone to your appointment, didn't he?" The man looked unimpressed with her.

"Luann is going to try to meet me here, she had a shoot. Tara's in surgery. Lia's in school and Gemma's got a huge day at the garage." She explained. "What are you doing here?"

He settled down on the chair next to her. "What do you think?"

"Hap asked you to come in with me?" Her eyebrows rose in surprise. "That can not be something that you actually want to do."

Quinn shrugged his massive shoulders, "I'm here, aren't I?"

"Yes, you are." She couldn't help but smile at him. "I'm starting to think that you actually like me Quinn."

"Don't go getting ahead of yourself," but he smiled as he said it. They'd made a lot of progress since Happy had gone away. When she'd stood her ground to the cops, fought for him through the lawyer and most importantly not ran away when she could easily have he'd been forced to finally see what everyone else knew; she loved Happy and he loved her. "They gonna be all up in your lady parts in there?"

"No," Madeline assured him. "They'll do an ultrasound, measure my stomach, check me out and maybe check my cervix. You can leave the room during that."

"Leave?" he let out a snort. "Then who's going to make sure that the doctor isn't getting any wrong ideas about pushing up on you?"

"That's not really how it works but suit yourself. I'd just make sure you sit up by my head or Hap might just take your eyes."

"Don't I fucking know it," he grumbled the words and leaned back in the chair. "How long is this shit going to take?"

The exam didn't take long, the doctor had referred to Quinn as Dad during the first few minutes and that went over as well as could be expected. It had sent Madeline into a fit of laughter that she couldn't control no matter how hard she tried. But laughter aside, she was glad to have Quinn there and surprised at the interest he took in everything that the doctor said.

They left with a list of suggestions of changes to make to Madeline's diet and she had a pamphlet about exercising during pregnancy. "I draw the line at the grocery store," he informed her. "Get one of the girls to go with you."

Madeline knew that it was pointless to tell him she could go shopping all by herself because she was a grown ass woman. "Okay, I'll call Lia later."

"She's good for the moron," Quinn couldn't have surprised her more if he'd broken out in a song and dance routine. "Get him to go with the two of you, carry the fucking bags."

"I will."

"You drive straight home."

"Yes Sir," she gave him a mock salute that earned her a glare. "And seriously though, thank you for showing up today. I really appreciate it."

"Thank me by listening to your Old Man the next time." He tapped his large hand on the roof of her car and was gone.

Madeline drove home with a smile, not even tempted to make a pit stop at the grocery store by herself. Quinn showing up was unexpected but she appreciated him doing it especially because she couldn't think of something more outside his comfort zone.

She'd just got in the door when the phone began to ring and her gut told her that it was Happy. "Hey! I just got back from the doctor."

"How'd it go?" His deep rumble of a voice made her smile even wider as she took the phone to the couch and sat down to tell him all about it.

21 21 21

Visiting days were the best and the worst, Madeline loved the anticipation of seeing her man. The time that he was spending working out had only improved his body which was a double edged sword because she wanted nothing more than to take that new body for a test drive but they were limited to holding hands during the visit and a quick hug and kiss at the beginning and end.

It took several hours of waiting before she was finally led into the visiting hall and seated at a table to wait for him. She always knew when it was him on the other side of the door, it took all of her control not to simply run across the room and into his arms but that would definitely get her thrown out.

"Look at you," a smile crossed his face as he approached. "Jesus Mad, the fuck are you eating?"

"Ass," she told him with narrowed eyes as she rose to hug him. He pressed his lips against hers quickly.

"You've been eating ass?"

"I'd so smack you if I could," Madeline sighed as he pulled back from her and grabbed his hands as they sat down. "Do I look bad?"

"Nah," he shook his head. She'd never looked better. Shit, who would have thought that getting her pregnant would be the one fucking bright spot in his life? When she'd first told him and offered to take care of it, he'd answered no without realizing that was what he was going to say. He'd never wanted kids, ever but like so many other things his little red headed devil had changed his mind without trying. "Hitch hiker behaving?"

"Yes, I'm still not getting morning sickness but I've got a fridge full of food that would make you say what the fuck."

"Cravings?" He remembered Jax and Opie talking about how their Old Ladies would eat the weirdest shit. Was he missing that?

"Not so much, it's the food that I told you the doctor said is good for the baby. Oh, I almost forgot!" She reached into her pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of glossy paper. "I begged, pleaded and threatened to cry and the guards said that they'd let me leave this with you. I didn't want to mail it just in case it got lost."

Happy took the paper from her and realized that it was a picture. "This is the hitch hiker?" It had to have been but it was something to say as he stared at the image. The first one he'd seen, hell he couldn't make out anything and had been glad that there had been arrows pointing to the kid. Now he could sort of see it. "Is that a dick?"

"I think that's probably an arm or something," Madeline couldn't hide her smile. "Because if that is a penis we have a serious problem because it's huge."

"Figure the hitch hiker is just like his father," Happy continued to stare at the picture. "Everyone doing their part, taking care of you?" He hated that he had to ask anyone to do anything for her but there wasn't shit that he could do stuck in this cage.

"Everyone's been great Hap, I told you I'm okay. How's shit in here?" She frowned. "Do our friend's friends have your back?"

"Yeah, I'm good Mad. I'm good," he gripped her hand tight. "Sorry that I'm doing this to you."

"You didn't do this on purpose," she knew how much it bothered him that he wasn't with her and how much he blamed himself. She didn't blame him, this was a side effect of the life that he lead. Hell, it was a miracle it hadn't happened sooner or that he hadn't gotten more time. "And we're going to get through this. The time is going to fly by and then you're going to be home with me and our baby where you belong."

"You ever think about running?"

"What?" Her frown was back. "Happy Lowman, are you asking me if I've ever thought about leaving you?" He nodded. "Oh, I've never been more tempted to smack the shit out of you!" It might not have been the smartest choice of words considering who she was saying them to but she didn't care. "I am your fucking wife, your Old Lady and soon to be your god damn Baby's Momma. I'm all in, there's no way I could be more in! I love you and that's the end of it. I am not leaving! Not now, not ever."

"Mad, calm the fuck down." He patted her hands. "It was just a question."

"Well you've got your answer, don't you?"

"You pissed at me?"

"I'll be pissed at you later, we don't have enough time for that now." She hated that the visits were limited because of overcrowding.

Her response made him smile, now that was just another reason that she was his girl. She was so fucking practical sometimes. "Tell me everything that's been going on, don't leave shit out."

This was a typical statement from him during a visit and Madeline had quickly realized that being incarcerated hadn't made him more talkative. He still liked to listen to her and he did listen. She gave him the run down of what she had been up to and under other circumstances it would have probably bored him but he listened to every word.

To Happy it didn't matter so much what she was saying but how she was saying it. There was no hint that Madeline was depressed or sad, well not more depressed or sad than she would be considering the situation. She laughed and smiled, she gripped his hand and he couldn't wait for the time to fly by so that he could be home and they could have more than this.

"Oh, I applied for family visits!" Her eyes sparkled. "Della doesn't think that we'll get approved because you've got short time but she said that it's possible since I'm pregnant and it's our first child."

"When will you know?"

"Couple of months though by that time they might need a bigger trailer for us because if I keep going at this rate..." she trailed off and got suddenly serious. "You ever think about running?"

Anger swelled inside of him but her expression made him swallow it down. She didn't need him to answer roughly, to be gruff and pissed. He knew what she needed, "Nah, never." And it was the truth. He might have had moments of doubts but he'd never been able to seriously see himself walking away from her. "I love you Girl."

Her smile was wide and told him that he'd taken care of any doubts that she had at the moment. He'd deal with the rest of the doubts when they came up. "I love you too."

A/N: Just wanted to let you all know that I will NOT be dragging out the chapters that deal with Happy's incarceration. I'm not sure of the exact time line but it will not drag. I hope that have Happy home with Madeline by Chapter 25.

Again, thanks for your support. This story would not be happening without you!


	22. Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

A/N: In my plan not to drag out Happy's incarceration I have added several time jumps in this chapter so that we'll cover a period of about seven months during it.

It was official, Madeline could no longer see her feet and she could no longer maneuver herself to put on her sneakers. She sighed and looked out at the rain pouring down from the sky, her flip flops would have to do because they were the only thing that she could get on without help. Gemma's dinner was in an hour, being as big as a house meant Madeline got out of doing the grunt work for the dinner but she was still expected to attend. Not that she was complaining about getting to eat all the yummy stuff she knew that Gemma had made but getting up and getting there was proving to be the problem.

As she did every day Madeline wished that Happy was there, to comfort herself she remembered the favorable outcome of his last evaluation. He was causing no trouble, not getting into fights and according to Della the fourteen months that they'd anticipated could be cut down to twelve months due to the increased overcrowding.

She couldn't count on that though, she was sticking with the initial fourteen months and by that math there were nine months to go and she was seven months pregnant. Their baby would be about five months old the first time that he or she got to meet Daddy.

Nine more months, it seemed impossible that she wasn't even halfway finished with this nightmare. She'd done everything that she could to be strong and now she just wanted to have Happy home with her, she wanted to fall asleep with him next to her or to hear him tease her about her shitty taste in music or just anything that would be normal.

Suddenly it didn't matter that she had to be at Gemma's, instead of finishing getting dressed Madeline pulled her legs up onto the couch and curled up as best she could with her ever expanding stomach. Tears rolled from her eyes, hot and heavy and when the phone rang she didn't even bother to reach for it because she knew that it wouldn't be him, he'd still be locked in his cell.

She must have fallen asleep but she didn't remember even closing her eyes. Madeline woke to a hand touching her shoulder gently. Her eyes opened to reveal Opie standing there. "How did you get in?" She rubbed her eyes and sat up.

"Ellie told me where you hide the key, you should have been at Gemma's place like an hour ago."

"I fell asleep."

"I can see that," the large man crouched down next to the couch. "You okay?"

All of the Sons had been great to her since Happy had gone away but Opie, well she considered him the closest thing that she'd ever had to a brother now. They'd bonded quickly when she started watching the kids and now it was pretty common for him to end up at her table for dinner right along with them. "No," she said finally. "I'll deny it if you say anything Op, please don't say anything."

"You're missing him," it was a statement, not a question.

"Yeah, I don't know why today is worse than any other day but it is," but she did, Madeline looked over at her traitor sneakers. "I don't think that I'm going to go at all," she sighed at the mere thought of having to call Gemma and tell her that.

Opie smiled, "Why don't I call Gemma for you?"

"You are the best Opie, the best."

"Alright, well if you're not going to the food then I'll just bring the food to you. Pizza?" he suggested, he knew that it was her weakness.

"You don't have to do that. You should go back, hang with the guys and the kids."

"They won't even notice that I'm gone," he promised. "Kids are spending the night at Jax and Tara's place anyway, they're going to Lego World or some shit tomorrow."

"Lego Land. Wait, Jax is going to Lego Land?"

A grin crossed Opie's face. "I already made Ellie promise to take a fuck ton of pictures."

"You sure that you don't want to run away possibly screaming from the weepy pregnant woman?"

"Nah, I'm good. Hell, when Donna was pregnant she used to cry over every damn thing. This one time I drank all the milk," Opie shook his head, "I ended up in freaking Lodi searching for the one particular brand she liked because she said it had the happiest cows, I couldn't freaking find it and when I got home..." he could remember how she'd just sat down on the couch and started to cry. It was like it would never end. "If I can handle that, I can handle you with no problem."

"Happy cows? Seriously?" Madeline felt herself smile for the first time in hours.

"Seriously," he confirmed. "So, what's the pizza topping?"

"Spinach and pepperoni," Madeline replied as he made a face. "What? It's delicious."

22 22 22

"Quinn," Happy embraced his brother briefly as he walked over to the table in the visiting room. "Surprised to see you," he sat down. "What's up?"

"We've got a problem." The man said without hesitation. "Bringing it to you because I need to know how you want to handle it. It's the girl."

"Maddy? What about her?"

"Think that one of our brothers is getting a little too friendly with her." Quinn had watched Opie and Madeline together several times and he didn't like the vibe that he was getting. She took care of his kids, cooked dinner for him and them but that wasn't what concerned him. When she'd flaked out on Gemma's dinner the night before he'd gone by the house and found them on the couch watching a movie.

It was too comfortable, too familiar and he didn't like it at all. He'd thought that he was wrong about her, hell the little girl seemed to have stepped up when Hap got locked up but now it just looked like she was biding her time until she found a replacement.

"Tig or Kozik?" Happy asked but without any real heat. Tig and Kozik were always a little inappropriate when it came to Maddy but he knew that they wouldn't do anything to cross a line. She wouldn't let that happen and they mostly did it to tease her. For some reason with the two of them she felt more relaxed when they said shit they probably shouldn't have.

"Opie," Quinn said seriously. "Been spending too much time over there, she's cooking him dinner and they're hanging out alone without those kids around. Ain't nothing good coming out of that Brother, we both know it."

"There isn't anything going on between them." Happy could say it with one hundred percent certainty.

"They keep up like this there will be, you need to nip this shit in the bud Brother. I'll tell him to back off for you, be my pleasure." Quinn's face screwed into a frown as Happy began to laugh. "Fuck is so funny?"

"No need to tell him to back off, it's not like that. You think I don't know that my Old Lady spends time alone with Opie? You think that shit would fly if I thought that either of them had ideas of something else?" He held his anger in though he felt it growing inside of him. "I thought that we were past this shit with Madeline. You said anything to her about this?"

"I'm just looking out for you Hap, trying to keep your shit from falling apart." Quinn held up his hands. "I know what I'm seeing."

"I know what you think that you're seeing Quinn and I know why you think you're seeing it. I trust Op and more important, I trust Madeline. I've got seven more fucking months inside this cage and if she needs a friend and Opie fits that bill, I'm all fucking for it. You know why he was at our house yesterday? It was because she couldn't get off the fucking couch because she was sad, some shit about not being able to put on her sneakers herself."

"She's the size of a small country, of course she wouldn't be able to put on her own shoes. Why is that a big deal?"

"Brother, you ever met a female who would be glad for being the size of a small country?" Happy shook his head. "Glad to know there's someone out there who knows less about women than me."

22 22 22

After pizza and movies with Opie the day before Madeline felt a little better, she was in a good mood even as she cleaned up around the house. The phone rang and she grabbed for it. "Hey!"

"Mad," Happy felt something inside of him relax at the sound of the smile in her voice. "What are you doing?"

"Folding socks," she dropped another pair into the pile, "and thinking about you."

"Thinking about me or thinking about Opie?" he questioned with a smile of his own.

"What?" Madeline demanded. "Did you get into drugs in there somehow?" She stopped folding the clothes. "Why would I be thinking about Opie?"

"Heard that he's been hanging around a lot," Happy told her.

"Let me guess, Quinn?" Madeline let loose a stream of curses that made Happy bite back a little chuckle. "You know that there's nothing going on with me and Op. I mean, shit look at him, he'd squash me like a little bitty bug."

"Quinn thinks that the two of you are going to run away together, start a new life with a little Brady Bunch thing going on."

"You used to watch The Brady Bunch?"

"I was a fucking kid at one point Mad, didn't spring from the womb fully grown with a knife between my teeth," he told her, "I let him know that he wasn't going to have any problems with the two of you."

"There is nothing going on and Opie's been great. So have the kids, they're doing a ton of chores and keeping me from having to work too hard and..." she took in a huge breath. "If you want me to tell them to stop coming around, I'll tell them."

"Mad, calm down. I know that there's nothing going on. Just thought that it was funny really."

"It wasn't funny when Opie got here yesterday, I was curled up on the couch in a ball ready to never even try to move again. I'm so big that I can't... I can't see certain parts of my body."

"You could never really see that part all too good unless I picked the right position."

"I meant my feet, not my freaking crotch. I can't see my feet! I'm not sure what color flip flops I have on today because that's all that I can wear, fucking flip flops! Because I can't get socks or shoes on my feet."

"Mad, you're not supposed to be able to see your feet because you're seven months pregnant," he pointed out. "Wait, flip flops? It's raining isn't it?"

"And that's part of the problem, I need to go to the store but it's too wet to wear these outside," she sighed. "I really miss you Hap."

"I miss you too Baby."

"Promise me that you're behaving. I can't take it if you've got to do more time. I need to know that you're doing everything that you can to come home."

"I am Mad, ain't got to worry about that. You coming to see me tomorrow? I don't think they allow flip flops."

"Shut up, they so do," but just in case she'd check the visiting rules and regulations. "Yes, I will be there, just like every other week."

"Wear that red shirt I like."

"It doesn't fit right anymore Hap, makes me look like I've got porn star titties."

"I know," he grinned into the phone, "that's pretty much the reason that I'm asking you to wear it." Her laughter was like a drug to him, he was glad to hear it and for a few moments there he'd feared he'd screwed up by teasing her but now she was fine.

"Alright, fine but I'm bringing another shirt in the car in case they decide that I'm too vulgar."

"Don't wear a bra," he added, his voice low. "And if you were to have Luann take some more of those pictures of you, I would not complain at all."

Madeline felt her face flush, she still wasn't sure how she'd let the woman talk her into the provocative poses except that Luann swore Otto had loved when she'd done things like that. She'd offered to take some photographs of her friend to repay the favor but the blonde had just smiled and explained that Otto didn't see well enough anymore to have the pictures make a difference to him.

"I hate not wearing a bra Hap, it's so noticeable and..." she stopped. "I won't wear panties either."

"You'd better wear fucking panties," he growled. The guards sometimes got a little too hands on during the pre-visit frisking, he knew that it was a power play on their part but that didn't stop him from wanting to smash their heads open. "Fuck."

"Phone time almost over?"

"Got to head out to the yard for exercise, probably lift some or play basketball."

"I'll see you tomorrow, in the red shirt," she promised. "Behave Hap, I love you."

"Love you too Girl."

22 22 22

Madeline tossed another bag of spinach into the shopping cart and consulted her list. There was a dull ache in her back but she ignored it as she finished grabbing the things that she needed. "Juice, I do not need five bags of candy."

She didn't need any candy, hell she might have just needed her jaw wired shut so she'd stop eating around the clock. Her cravings had been pretty tame, thankfully because the mere thought of pickles and ice cream made her stomach churn sickly but she was always hungry, always snacking on something and it showed.

If she didn't know from other people telling her she'd be sure that she didn't have any feet at all, the weather had gotten a little warmer so at least no one looked at her like she was nuts for the flip flops that she lived in. Her clothes no longer fit and it seemed ridiculous to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe so she'd brought a bunch of leggings and started to help herself to the tee shirts on Happy's side of the closet.

Juice dumped the bags of candy into the cart. "They're half price, it's like buying two. Well two and a half but it's a deal. Besides, you weren't complaining about the Kit Kat I gave you on the drive over." He'd been behind the wheel of course because there was now way she could drive. In fact, Juice was pretty sure that she was about to have the kid any day, with his luck today.

"Fine, just put them in. Hands off the Reese Cups, they're mine."

"Alright, they're yours. Hold on I'm just going to grab another bag."

"Moron," she mumbled with a shake of her head. She reached up to grab a box of cereal and a sharp pain shot through her. "Shit." Even though she wanted to remain in denial, the pain coupled with the ache in her back told her that her child was not waiting. The hitch hiker was ready to meet the world. "Fuck," of course she'd be with Juice when it happened. "Uh, Juice?"

"Yeah Maddy?" He jogged over, three more bags of candy in his hands. "Oh, oh shit. Is it time? Please tell me it's not time."

"Sorry Juice," she dropped the box of cereal into the cart. "We really should get to the check out because I really need these groceries."

"You're in labor and you still want to buy the groceries? You're as weird as your Old Man sometimes," he joked but she saw he'd taken out his phone. "I'm just going to call Quinn."

Madeline bit back a sigh, lately Quinn had gone from being pretty cool to douche in record time. He was still harboring hard feelings or whatever because he thought that she was setting her sights on Opie. It was the most ridiculous thing in the world. Men, she shook her head, law frowned on killing them but they were impossible to deal with most of the time. Except her man, with only seven months left to go she was starting to count down the days until Happy came home.

Juice was frowning into his phone, "that's what I said Brother, she's in labor and says that we're going to check out the groceries and then go to the hospital."

"THE FUCK?" Quinn roared on the other end of the phone and loud enough for Madeline to hear him. "Get her to the hospital now or you're gonna wish you had once I get my hands on you."

Juice hung up the phone, swallowed hard. "Madeline, we've got to go to the hospital now. We're not arguing about it. Come on, let's go."

Madeline nearly laughed at him, Juice's most intimidating face wasn't really all that intimidating to be honest though she might have been a little bit immune to any threatening face that wasn't as terrifying as Happy's. Although Quinn did intimidation really well, a fact that she was reminded of as Juice shoved his phone in his pocket. "Okay, I'll go in peace," she told him, "but you're coming back here and getting me all of this stuff and I'm taking the damn Reeses Cups with us."

It was a comedy of errors as they finally arrived at St. Thomas, Juice demanded that she be taken immediately to a room and the nurse looked at him with a soft smile. "First time Dad?"

"He's not the dad," Madeline told her. "He's the Uncle, got a bunch of other Uncles who are probably going to show up."

The nurse eyed Juice's cut and nodded her head. "We'll get you up to the maternity floor and page your doctor."

"Can you page Doctor Knowles too?" Madeline gritted her teeth as another contraction tightened her stomach. "And send whoever has the drugs to me, immediately." She turned her attention to Juice. "Is there any way to let Hap know that this is happening?"

"I'll make a call, see if someone can run up to Stockton and bring him out for a visit," Juice fumbled with his phone. "He'll get to see it when he comes home though. I told Bobby to bring my video camera so that we can record everything."

"Record everything?" Madeline felt her blood pressure spike and it had nothing to do with the pain of labor. "I will kill you with that video camera if I see it anywhere near my nether regions during labor, you got me Juice?"

He swallowed hard, "Got it. Fuck, it was creepy how much you reminded me of Hap right now."

22

There was pain and then there was this. "You're doing great Sweetheart, so great." Luann fed her another ice chip. "You just scream to high hell if that's what you need to do."

"I want Hap."

"I know Baby, I know." Gemma was on the other side of the bed and Juice stood near the door recording it all for prosperity.

"Knock Knock." Nero spoke from the door. "Can I come in?"

Gemma looked over at Madeline who nodded, she got along well with the older man. "Come to see me tortured Nero, that's sweet."

"I brought you a present," Nero stepped inside and held up a small bag.

"Thank you," Madeline hissed and squeezed Luann's hand.

"Go on, open it."

"Right now? Jesus Nero, she's a little busy getting ready to push something the side of a watermelon out of a hole the size of a grape," Gemma hit his arm lightly.

"Trust me, she will want to open this. Go on Honey, it's okay." Nero handed her the bag.

Madeline was about to tell him to fuck off but that would have been rude. Who pushed a present on a woman in active freaking labor? An idiot, she decided. She shoved her hand into the bag. "I already have a phone."

"Look at the screen," he told her.

"Hap?" Madeline focused on the small screen. "How in the world?"

"Nero's got a lot of friends," he told her in a gruff voice. "One of the guards is letting me use his phone, so I could see you. You're beautiful Girl, so fucking beautiful."

"I need you," she began to sob, "I can't do this alone."

"You're not alone and you can do this. I need you to be strong Mad, need you to bring our baby into the world without me." Happy's voice was thick with emotion. "Got to get him born so that you can bring him to see me."

"We don't know that it's a boy Hap." She didn't really mind either way but hoped that if she did have a girl that he wouldn't be so disappointed.

"It is. We're going to name him what I told you, right?"

"Right," she said as several tears slipped from her eyes.

"Sorry Lowman, you've got to wrap it up." The guard spoke in the background.

"Mad..."

"I know, I love you too. Don't worry, you'll get to see everything. Juice has a camera in here."

"Tell him to keep it above the waist or I'll shove it up his ass. I love you too Girl."

Madeline stared at the phone for a moment after his face disappeared from the screen. "Thank you Nero, thank you so much."

"My pleasure." He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. "I'll let you get back to it, I'll hang around though. I've got money riding on the fact that you're going to have a little girl."

"Lord, let's hope not," Gemma commented. "What? Little girls should be drowned at birth, I'm just saying look at all the shit that they cause."

"By that logic the human race would die out pretty quickly Gem." Madeline pointed out but was glad for a chance in the conversation topic, anything to take her mind off of the pain.

It was only a few minutes later when the doctor walked in, Juice averted the camera during the exam. "Alright Mrs. Lowman, it's time to push."


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters that you recognize.

A/N: First, as always I just have to thank all of you who have left me reviews, followed this story or made me one of your favorites. I can not express how much it means to me! I love these characters and I'm so glad that you seem to as well.

There are no time jumps in this installment but there will be in the next because I can't wait for Happy to be home with his family. I hope that you enjoy this so I'll quit babbling and you can start reading.

CHAPTER 23

Aiden Maddox Lowman was a beautiful child. He came into the world with a scream, 21 inches long and nine pound six ounces of perfection. The first time Madeline held him she'd realized that there had been something missing from her life and he was it. The pain of labor was forgotten, all she could think of was how she would never ever let anything happen to him. Her son would be protected in every way possible until her final dying breath.

There had been celebration in the delivery room and a lot of laughter when Juice had simply keeled over when faced by the sight of Aiden's bloody crying entrance to the world. When he woke he'd nearly fainted again when Gemma had pointed out that Hap would likely take his eyes for the glimpse that he'd gotten.

Madeline had joined in the laughter but all she really wanted was to be alone with her son. Her son who already looked just like his father, his eyes were just as dark and she was glad that it didn't seem like he'd inherited her red hair.

The two days she'd spent in the hospital hadn't fully prepared her for the work that it was going to be to take care of him. She'd never been so tired, truly aching down to her bones tired but it didn't seem right to pay someone to come and take care of him when she was at home. He was her son, her responsibility.

One of the hardest parts about the two days was not speaking to Happy. She knew that he knew she was okay because he'd called the club house for a report on her condition but now that she was home with their son in her arms she couldn't wait for him to call.

"Daddy's going to call soon," she told Aiden as she tried to encourage him to latch on but he didn't seem to be as much of a breast man as his father. Tara said that it was normal, typical even and that she shouldn't worry but Madeline was worried.

Her worry eased a bit when he finally began to drink. "That's a good boy, that's my good boy. I can't wait to take you to take you to see Daddy," a smile crossed her face at the thought. Of course a jail visiting room wasn't the place that she'd had in mind but the place didn't matter. "He is going to be head over heels in love with you."

23 23 23

Happy stood impatiently in the line for the phone. "Ten minutes means ten minutes Fucker," he advised the man who was standing at the phone.

"Fuck you," the other prisoner replied and turned back to the conversation. "Like I told you, if I come home and find some pussy pink bed set on our bed I'm just going to end up right the fuck back here Bitch."

"Gonna end up in the infirmary if you don't wrap it up," Happy advised, he'd been waiting two days to talk to Madeline. Her cell phone service at the hospital had sucked to the point that she couldn't get calls and hearing about her and his son from his Brothers was not the same as hearing her voice.

"You got a problem?" The man dropped the phone and before Happy could answer lunged at him.

He reacted from years of instinct, stopping the man before he could get a hit in and putting him down hard. It was only when he stomped down on the man's side hard that he really realized what he was doing. Immediately he stepped back as the guards swarmed over.

Fuck, he'd just screwed up his record as a model prisoner. There was no way that he was getting a phone call and Madeline was going to be waiting. "I didn't expect this shit from you Lowman," the guard who spoke knew him pretty well. It was the same guard who Nero had pulled strings with to get him the video call to Madeline in the delivery room. "Got to take you to the hole."

"How long?" Happy didn't resist as his arms were wrestled behind his back and restrained.

"Probably a week," the guard answered. "I'll do what I can but you know that this goes on your record."

Moments later he was pushed into a tiny, dark cell where he'd remain until they opened the door to let him out. Angry that he'd put himself into the situation he took his aggressions out on the wall, not even caring when his hand came away bloody.

23 23 23

"How bad is it?" Madeline eyed Della Edmond as she cradled Aiden in her arms.

"The other prisoner started the altercation so that's something. The guard on duty has gone on record about that but they take a pretty firm stand on violence of any kind. Visiting is out this week, if he behaves once they let him out of solitary you should be able to go next week."

Madeline just nodded, words weren't an option because if she spoke she was going to cry. The situation was frustrating but that wasn't the reason for her tears. Her hormones were still seriously out of whack which from everything she read was perfectly normal.

"There's something else," Della reached into her desk drawer. "The Charming Board of Education has agreed to a settlement."

"Wait, what?" Truthfully Madeline had forgotten all about the lawsuit that Della had filed on her behalf because there had been other more important things on her mind.

"They've offered a cash settlement if the lawsuit is dropped and you agree to sign a non-disclosure agreement regarding everything that happened with them and..." Della paused because she felt that this was the part Madeline would appreciate more, "they'll give you a good recommendation for anyone who inquires."

"You're saying that I could teach anywhere again?" It hadn't even been a possibility as far as she was concerned. "Are you serious?"

"I'm serious," Della took the agreement out of the folder. "That's the amount that they're offering."

Madeline's eyes went wide and if she wasn't holding Aiden she would have screamed on top of her lungs. They were offering her a quarter of a million dollars, a lump sum payment and as she scanned the offer she saw that they'd also put it in writing that they would give her a positive recommendation.

"All that you've got to do is sign on the bottom line, I'll have it notarized and this will all be over. Justin Ray will be nothing but a bad memory."

"I need to talk to Happy first," Madeline replied.

"This is a time sensitive deal Madeline, I really wish that you could but it needs to be signed and agreed to within the next three business days."

Madeline took a deep breath. "Okay," she nodded. If there wasn't time to talk to him then she had to make the choice on her own. If he hadn't gotten into that stupid fight she could have asked his opinion but was there really any way that he would say anything but take it. It was a quarter of a million dollars, enough money to make sure that they were secure. Hell, enough money that she could buy their house free and clear now that the landlord was making noises once again about selling the place. "I'll sign."

23 23 23

He'd spent a week in the hole and it had felt like a year. The week that followed felt like a decade as he kept himself on his best behavior and finally he was able to have visitors again, real visits and not behind glass. He knew that he had Della Edmond to thank for that and he wouldn't forget it.

To have to see his son from behind a sheet of glass would have broken something inside of him just as not being able to touch Madeline, even if it was briefly, would have. "Lowman," the guard called as his cell unlocked. "It's time."

He smiled at the guard, really smiled. "Thank you."

"Look, I talked to the guys in the visiting hall and they're going to look the other way for the first few minutes of the visit. Figure that your wife deserves a kiss or two especially if your boy has a head as big as yours."

Again, Happy felt himself smiling. "Screw you," he told the man with no real heat. It was a surprise to find out that a guard was a decent guy. Of course it also made him wonder just what Nero had on the man to get him to break rules but hell, everyone had a secret or two in their closet.

The visiting room was full of people but he saw her immediately, how could he miss her? She looked tired but damn good and there was a blue wrapped bundle pressed to her chest. His son. Their son. Happy stopped dead in his tracks as the reality of it hit him. He was now the one thing that he'd sworn he'd never be, he was a father.

She looked over then, saw him and smiled. Slowly she got to her feet and he went to her. "Hap!" Her face showed shock as he bent down and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss that followed was hard and deep, made her toes curl inside of her shoes but she brought one hand up to push him back. "Please, please don't get in trouble again. They're going to take you away."

"Nah, they're not," he claimed her mouth with his again and cut the kiss shorter than he would have liked. "Can I see him?" He'd told her not to send pictures, he'd wanted this moment to be in person.

"Well, that is why I brought him." Madeline shifted Aiden in her arms and turned him to face his father.

"Jesus Christ," Happy felt like someone had kicked him straight in the chest. "Hey Little Man," he reached out and pulled the blanket back. "Fuck, he's perfect."

"Did you expect anything less?" Madeline was smiling ear to ear. "Here, hold him."

"He's too little." And his hands were too big. Fuck, his hands had done things that should never be associated with the tiny little life in front of him. "I can't."

"You're not going to break him. Tara assures me it's pretty impossible." She handed the baby over and bit her tongue to stop from correcting him on how to hold him. It took a moment but once Happy sat down their son was nestled in his arms.

Tears stung Madeline's eyes and she let them fall. "Don't start that shit Mad, come on."

"I'm not sad," she told him. "You holding him is the most beautiful thing that I've ever seen."

"Never been called beautiful before," he mused as he looked down at his son. "He's good?"

"Yes, he's good. He's perfect. He sleeps like you though, one eye open ready for trouble." It meant a lot of sleepless nights for her but she wasn't getting much sleep anyway and she didn't mind. "Seven more months Hap."

"I won't fuck up again," he promised. "Guy came at me, I had to..."

"I know, the guard backed up your story. Della says that she doesn't think it'll effect your release for good behavior but even if it does, we'll deal with it. We'll handle it together."

Happy knew that she was telling the truth, they'd deal with whatever shit life threw their way but he didn't want to even think about an extra four years behind these walls. Just the thought of what he would miss with his son made him feel like a piece of shit already, the idea that he could be walking, talking and in school before his father was home made him want to break something.

He would not be like his father, hell no. His son would never have to wonder if he was loved. He would know it with every day, he'd tell him. And Madeline, she wasn't going to end up a single parent like his mother with her daily struggle to make ends meet and keep a roof over their head.

"I'm sorry Baby," Happy met her eyes.

"Don't, please. It's okay."

"It's not," Happy looked down at Aiden. "Seven months and I'll be home. I don't give a fuck what I have to do to get there."

"Speaking of home, there's something I wanted to talk to you about." Madeline had been a bit nervous about it to be honest. It was a big thing that she'd taken the settlement and after she had signed the paper doubts had plagued her, what if he was angry that she'd taken it without him?

"What's the matter? You need money? They not taking care of you." The change in his posture was immediate.

"No, it's not that. Everyone's been great and Jax is making sure that I get what's coming to me. Last week when I went to see Della about your altercation, she told me that Charming BOE was ready to settle."

"That's a good thing, right?"

"It was a time sensitive settlement, they wanted to cover their asses as much as possible. They offered me a quarter of a million dollars and a positive reference."

He let out a low whistle. "Shit Girl, you're going to be rolling in the dough once you agree."

"That's the thing, it was time sensitive so I've already signed the papers. The deposit should be in our account within the next few days."

Happy let the words sink in for a minute. "Our account?"

"Where else would I put it?"

"That's your money Mad." He continued to stare at her. "You were scared to tell me, weren't you?"

"Not scared, I just worried that you might be pissed I made such a big decision without you."

"I fucked up," he said. There was a time where he would have blown up about it but that was long past. She'd made a decision for their family and he couldn't fault her with that. If there was one thing that he knew it was that his girl, his Old Lady, his wife would always stand her ground and do what was best for their family. "You had to make the decision and you did but you don't have to put the money into our account."

"Like I said, where else would I put it? It's not my money, it's our money for us and for Aiden," she smiled. "And I was thinking that I know the perfect way to spend it."

"That's a lot of money to blow on shoes."

"It's not shoes, well there are going to be some shoes now that I can see my feet again."

"Don't count on being able to see them for long," he grinned slowly as she frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"It means that this little warrior is going to need a brother or sister."

"You want more kids?" Madeline couldn't have been more floored if he'd gotten up and did a song and dance routine. "Really?"

"Yeah," he admitted though he hadn't known it until he said it. He'd missed everything with Aiden and he wasn't going to do it again. "That a problem?"

"No," she replied as tears began to fall again. "But I think that it definitely means that we need to buy a bigger house. I was going to say we should buy our house but it's only two bedrooms. It sounds like we need three."

"Better make it four," he began to stroke Aiden's back as he started to cry. "What did I do to him?"

"Made his Momma incredibly happy?" Madeline wiped at her cheeks. "It's time for him to eat."

"Nah, you ain't whipping your tits out in here. No fucking way because then I'll have to kill everyone in this room."

"I've got a bottle of breast milk, he seems to like plastic better than my nipples."

"Really? He's going to love crow eaters when he grows up then." Happy shifted the blanket all the way off of Aiden's face and caught sight of the small blue hat perched on his head. It couldn't have been the same hat that Abel had worn but it was similar. "Look at him, he's already rocking the reaper."

"Can we not talk about our son possibly fucking diseased whores?" Madeline opened up the clear plastic bag that held the bottle and other necessities for Aiden. "Do you want to feed him?"

"Fuck yeah, I'll feed him. Change his diapers. I'm going to do all that shit Mad, I'm going to be a good Dad. I promise."

"I know that you will be," she handed over the bottle and rose to place a bib around Aiden's neck.

Happy sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of her cleavage. "Woman, are you not wearing a bra?"

"Took you long enough to notice," she winked at him. "I'll still be pumping in seven months so they'll be just about this big."

Happy let out a low growl. "You trying to kill me Girl?" Her only response was a smile as she sat back down. Without a real clue as to what he was doing Happy guided the bottle into his sons mouth. It was going to be a long seven months.


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

"I got this list of houses for sale from Oswald," Gemma said without preamble as Madeline opened the front door. "Get the baby ready, we'll go and take a look."

"No," Madeline told the woman.

"Excuse me?" Gemma raised one perfect eyebrow at her.

"I told you already Gemma, I'm not looking for a place until Happy's home." There were only four more months to go and she could wait that much longer to start searching.

"Sweetheart, do you really think any man wants to spend his time searching for a house? Some of these places are amazing and they won't be around in four months."

"Then we'll find another amazing place that is," her tone left no room for argument. If she'd learned anything since Happy got locked up it was that when it came to Gemma she had to stand up for herself or she'd just be rolled over. The knowledge had come in handy especially when the woman had tried to tell her how to take care of Aiden. She knew that Gemma's intentions were good but she was his mother and this was her family.

"Suit yourself," Gemma all but sneered the word. "Throwing a pot luck at the club tonight, bring something and be there at seven."

"I don't want to screw up Aiden's sleep schedule, he usually goes down at eight."

"There's plenty of places there to put a baby to sleep. We've all done it. So, if we're not going house hunting, I'll just see you at seven. No excuses Madeline." With that Gemma turned and left, her anger still obvious.

Madeline sighed and flipped the locks on the door. She walked over to Aiden's bouncer seat to find that he was awake but content to just sit there and stare at the row of toys suspended over the seat. "Four more months Little Man and then Daddy will be home."

She couldn't wait.

24 24 24

Happy glanced up as the guard opened the cell. "Alright Lowman, this is it. Let's go." He hadn't been able to believe his ears when he'd been called into a meeting with Della Edmond the day before. The blonde woman had been grinning from ear to ear and the bearer of very good news, due to overcrowding and his good behavior his release was coming after ten months of being in the cage instead of the fourteen he'd been counting down.

He followed the guard down the hall and began to sign the paperwork for his release. Even when he held the pen in his hands he didn't believe that it was real. It was only once he was handed back his personal belongings did it finally begin to dawn on him, he was going home. In just a few hours he'd be back in Charming, back to his family and club.

He couldn't fucking wait.

24 24 24

"Bring something with you," Madeline grumbled the words as she tried to make shepard's pie in between picking up and rocking an exceptionally cranky Aiden. Her son was an angel, except when he wanted to be a devil. Each time that she put him down he screamed loud enough that she suspected someone might just call children's services on her. That would be the icing on a shitty day. "Shhh."

Aiden let out another ear piercing scream. She had no clue what was wrong with him, he'd been fed, changed and burped. "Shhh," she repeated as she cradled him with one arm and stirred the burning beef with the other. Even if the food was burned it was likely that most of the guys would still eat it.

"Please Baby, please," she pleaded with him as she burned her hand on the hot edge of the pan. A stream of curses spilled from her lips as she shut off the flame and shoved the pot off of the burner.

She was going to have to do something that she'd never done before and pick up something from the store because her son was intent on not letting her cook. He was certainly more important than Gemma's dinner, despite what she might think.

"Let's try a nap," she pressed kisses to Aiden's head. "Mommy could really use a nap."

Madeline knew that she should have laid Aiden down in his crib but she preferred to have him in her bed. It was less lonely that way. She sighed as she stretched out next to him after building a barrier of pillows on the other side of them. He seemed to calm down, content to lay there and have her stroke his stomach.

"Fucking alarm isn't on," Happy growled the words as he let himself in the back door. The smell of something burned was heavy in the air and he felt a twinge of panic at the sight of the burned beef. What the hell had happened here? Madeline didn't burn food, she was a rather anal cook always in the kitchen with a spoon in her hand.

Slowly he opened the cabinet above the fridge and was glad to see that the gun he'd left there was still in place. He took it down, checked the clip and started through the house. His search ended in the bedroom, their bedroom where he found his wife sound asleep on the bed and his son awake and looking around.

He didn't know shit about what babies could and couldn't do at three months old, he'd probably only held one kid that young besides Aiden so he picked him up carefully. "You wear Mama out Little Man?" There was recognition of Aiden's face, no one could tell him different.

Madeline didn't even stir as he moved to sit on the other side of the bed and she wasn't typically a deep sleeper. Fuck, she must have been tired. "What the hell does she need all these pillows for? Any of your Uncles been sleeping over that I should know about?" But he knew the answer, it just seemed that his son liked his voice.

Happy tossed most of the pillows onto the floor, kicked off his boots and somehow managed to get his cut off without dropping the baby. He felt a sense of accomplishment from that as he laid down on his side of the bed.

"This feels good Little Man, real fucking good." And it did, his bed beneath his back with his son on his chest and his wife next to him shit didn't get better than this.

Madeline was warm, comfortable and still so very sleepy as she opened her eyes. Except she realized that she was still dreaming the second that she saw Happy on the other side of the bed, this had happened before and she was sure it would keep happening. Though she knew that she should shake herself awake, she couldn't bring herself to.

Her hand reached out for him and the warmth of his skin made her smile, this was one hell of a vivid dream.

Happy woke at the feeling of her touch and turned his head towards her. "Don't try and start nothing, I got our son right here."

He'd never spoken to her in her dreams before. Madeline felt herself frown, was she losing it or had she already lost it?

"Mad?" He shifted and Aiden let out an ear piercing scream that his comfortable position had been changed.

Madeline closed her eyes and knew that when she opened them again he'd be gone, the dream would be over and reality would be firmly back in place. With a sigh she opened her eyes.

"Hey," Happy reached his hand out and stroked her face. "I pissed him off somehow. He won't stop crying."

"I'm still asleep."

"You're doing a really good job at faking being awake," a smile slid across his face.

"You're here? How the hell are you here?" she blinked several times. "This is real?"

"Got early release, apparently I was really well behaved. Jesus Mad, say something. This isn't exactly how I saw this happening."

"I.." she reached out and ran her hand down his arm. "You're really here," her voice cracked. "It's over?"

"It's over," he confirmed. "C'mere Girl." He let out a laugh as she launched herself in him, that was more like it. "Hey, watch the kid. Don't wanna crush him between us on my first day home."

Madeline began to laugh as well. "Put him down," her hands shook and the minute that he laid Aiden down she was on him. "Hold me," she whispered. "Please, just hold me."

Happy wrapped his arms around her. "Easy Baby," but he didn't tell her not to cry. There was going to be no stopping that river of tears. Instead he just held her against his chest and stroked her back softly. "I love you."

"I love you more, I was going crazy without you. Every single day I'd just look at the calendar and..." her voice failed but her mouth still worked. Madeline brought her lips to his in a kiss that said everything she couldn't manage to say and more. His hands moved down to grip her hips as they fought for dominance.

It was only when she realized that she was grinding her center against him that she forced herself to stop and pull back. "Aiden. We can't do this with Aiden on the bed."

Happy looked down at his son. "Looks like he's sleeping to me. You're just going to have to keep it down."

"First, sleeping or not we can't make love in the same bed as him. That's like... I don't know what it's like but it's weird Hap, really freaking weird."

Happy could see her point but there was no way that he was waiting a minute longer, not when she'd gotten him so painfully hard. "Alright, I've got it," he glared at her playfully when she squealed as he swung his legs off of the bed and rose to his feet with her still in his arms. "Knew you couldn't be quiet."

"Shut up," she laughed, leaned in to nibble his bottom lip. "If this isn't real and it's some dream or coma world or something, I want to stay here forever."

"You're about to see how real this is," he assured her as he carried her to the bathroom and set her down on the counter. "Again, this is not how I pictured this going down."

"Don't leave me again, I don't mean for like runs and shit, you know what I mean. Please, don't."

"I'm not gonna Girl," but even as he spoke the words he knew that they were possibly a lie. With the life that he lived, the things that he did for the club, it was entirely possible that he'd end up in a cage again maybe even for the rest of his life like Otto. That thought had never really bothered him before but now it did. "Look at me," he wasn't sure that she really believed this was happening and he needed her to. "I'm here and not going anywhere."

"Okay," Madeline smiled. "You know, this isn't how I pictured this happening either."

"Were you hoping for rose petals and shit?"

Her laughter filled the air and he felt himself grow even harder, her legs tightened around his waist. "If I wanted rose petals and shit, I married the wrong guy. I don't know how I thought it would happen but I do know that I didn't expect it for another four months." As she spoke her hands roamed over his body, she needed to assure herself that it was real, that he was real.

"I was as surprised as you Mad, when that lawyer bitch showed up unexpected I thought for sure it was to tell me that I had no chance of getting out early." He could easily remember the feeling that he'd had as he sat down, the way he'd steeled himself to take the news that his son wouldn't know him except behind bars.

"She didn't call me."

"Told her not too, wanted to surprise you. Had Opie pick me up and bring me home." On the ride he'd grilled his Brother about how Madeline was really holding up and he'd felt like a piece of shit at Opie's honest answer.

"_She's one of the strongest women I've ever seen, and that's saying something when I grew up with Gemma as my second mother," Opie paused. "She tries to hide it but she's never not hurting, she's always missing you. It hasn't been easy for her, she's doing it though. I'm glad that you got out early Hap, and not just because I really missed you." The larger man grinned. "If the two of you need some alone time, bring Aiden over. Least I can do is watch him after everything Maddy's done for me and my kids._

"Hap?" Madeline traced her fingers over his lips. "What's wrong?"

"Just thinking, I missed you Girl. Missed you so fucking much. I don't know what I did to deserve you," he wasn't quite comfortable with spilling his guts out like this but knew that she needed it. Hell, she deserved it after all the shit that he'd put her through. "I love you."

Madeline placed both of her hands on his shoulders, she knew his words were true and that they weren't easy for him to say. "I love you." She drew him closer with her legs, brought her mouth to his. "And I need you, like right now."

Happy grinned and released his grip on her hips to pull her shirt up over her head. "Been thinking about your tits since the first time you brought Aiden to see me." They were definitely larger, fuller and the most tempting thing that he'd ever seen in his life. "You ever wear a bra anymore?"

"I never wear a bra in the house," Madeline blushed. "Just be gentle, they're really sensitive."

He didn't need to hear any more, he lowered his mouth and sucked one plump perfect nipple into his mouth. It hardened immediately and she moaned. Fuck, she was always responsive but the way that she was moving her hips against him was new. Then again it had been a long time since he was inside of her, too long.

There was no time to be sweet, to take things slow. He wanted to but his body told him that it was time to take things to the next level or he was going to completely ruin his jeans. It made him feel like a horny teenager all over again, worrying that he was going to shoot his load before he even got inside of her.

"We good to do this?"

"I'll stab you in the throat if you stop," she released her legs from around him and pushed off of the counter top so that she could shove down the shorts she was wearing. Her skin beneath was bare, she didn't miss his reaction to that fact.

"This is probably going to be quick, like blink and you miss it quick." And because he didn't want to leave her hanging he lifted her up to the counter top once more and let his hand slide up her thigh.

The feeling of her warm, wet and ready for him made his cock twitch. He shut his eyes but that didn't help at all, her body flooded as he stroked one finger along his clit and her hips began to rock when he slid two fingers inside of her.

"Hap!" Madeline's nails dug deep into his shoulders. She'd only known her touch since he went inside and she couldn't do to her body what he was doing without even really trying. "Please," she breathed the word.

He stepped back, pulled his shirt over his head and dropped his pants. Her eyes remained on him the entire time. "Like what you see?"

"You know that I do," she blushed. She might have gotten over a lot of things when it came to him and their relationship but with a look and a few words she still turned red.

"Next time will be better," he promised as he stepped forward. "I just need..."

"I know Hap," Madeline wrapped her legs around him once again. "And I need you to fuck me."

There was serious resistance from her body when he pushed inside. "Fuck," he stilled his hips and took her mouth. She kissed him back eagerly, locked her ankles behind his back and urged him forward. "Don't want to hurt you."

"You're not, feels good." It felt really fucking good in fact, good enough that she was sure she'd come before he was even fully inside of her. It wasn't that she'd forgotten the feeling of him inside of her but it had been so long, the memories couldn't hold a candle to the feeling of him as he pushed in deeper. "Yes, yes. Oh God, yes."

Her cries, the way that she clung to him and the feeling of her body wrapped around his cock like a vice overcame any thoughts he had of taking it easy. His hips set a fast, almost punishing pace, but she met each thrust eagerly.

Madeline pressed her lips against his shoulder as he filled her. Her stomach was full of a tight coiled knot that she knew would spin out of control any second. "I'm going to come," she panted the words and bit down harshly on his shoulder when one hand slid between her legs to stroke over her center.

"Come," he roared the word and fought the feeling tingling inside of him. He needed to hold out just a few seconds longer so that he could come with her walls clenching around him. "Mad!'

She threw her head back and screamed his name as her orgasm smashed into her like a freight train. She lost control of her body as he continued to slide in and out of her. "Fuck. Fuck." With one final curse he slammed fully inside of her and let himself find the release that he'd been craving since they put the cuffs on him inside of the clubhouse.

They were still panting, trying desperately to regain control of the powers of normal breathing and speech when Aiden's angry cry cut through the air. Happy smirked. "You woke him up."

"I think you had a hand in that," she went to slide off the counter top. "I'll get him."

"Nah, I've got him." Happy kissed her hard on the lips before he pulled his pants back up. "Why don't you take a bath?"

"A bath?" It had been months since she'd had a proper relaxing bath, something that she'd done on a regular basis since the day that they met. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. Go on, I've got the kid." He took one last look at her, beautiful and naked with that dazed look she got in her eyes after an intense orgasm. "You better rest Mad, I ain't nowhere near done with you yet."

A/N: And Happy's home 3 I just couldn't keep these two apart any longer. I hope that you all enjoyed it as much as I did. We've got some quality family time coming up as they adjust to being new parents, house hunting and lots of other fun stuff. Thank you all again for your interest in this story. I can't say enough how much it means to me.


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING you recognize, all that you don't.

A/N: Here's another chapter of Madeline/Happy, this takes place about two weeks after Happy comes home.

In a bit of selfish promotion, I just want you all to know that I've begun to post the Kozik fic that has invaded my brain. That does not mean that I will stop posting on this story. I've got great plans for both. Anyone who would like to check out my newest story, the link is in my profile and it's called 'All Good Things'.

As always THANK YOU SOOO MUCH for all of your reviews, follows and favorites. You lovely readers never fail to bring a smile to my face or brighten my day.

PS-I've got some sort of flu thing going on so ignore any spelling or grammar errors that my feverish brain may have missed.

Chapter Twenty FIVE

Madeline listened to the sound of Happy talking to Aiden with a smile. There was no way in hell the three month old could understand the inner workings of a Harley engine but that wasn't stopping his father. The thing was, no matter what Happy said when he was talking to Aiden the boy remained quiet and content, during his worse screaming fits all his father had to do was speak and then suddenly the tears and screaming stopped.

Aiden loved his father and his mother couldn't blame him. Two weeks had passed since the day that he'd been released and surprised her in their bed and everything had fallen perfectly back into place, it was like no time at all had passed.

"Hap?" she poked her head into the living room. "We've got to leave in twenty minutes to go see the house." It would be the fifth one that they looked at and the pictures on the internet looked promising. The first four houses had been nice but there was never a real pull towards any of them.

"Alright, I've got to go to the club house later. Jax wanted to talk to me about something. You should come with me, bring the kid."

"We could do that," she said. They'd been spending a lot of time at their house since he'd come home. No one could blame them for that, it was well needed quality family time.

"Where did you put that blue stuffed bunny thing? Kid doesn't like being in the cage without it."

"Check the playpen, and it's not like you can strap him on the back of your bike just yet."

"Yeah, need a few more months for that."

"Try a few more years, like sixteen years."

"Come on, you've seen Abel ride with Jax. It's perfectly safe." Happy found the bunny in the playpen and looked at it. He couldn't help but wonder when his life had shifted from guns and knives to bunnies and shitty diapers but he wasn't complaining at all. "Speaking of riding, we haven't been out on the bike since I got home."

"Because we can't strap him in between us."

"Tonight, we're taking Aiden to Op's and we're going to go out for a ride, maybe get food or something." He stood in the kitchen door and watched her expression. "What?"

"You know that I don't like leaving him."

"You saying that you suddenly don't trust Op anymore?" He questioned as he leaned against the door frame.

"Of course I trust Opie, I know that he can take care of Aiden. He's got two kids of his own it's just that... what if we miss something?"

"We're not going to miss anything Mad, all he does is pretty much eat, sleep and shit. Sometimes he shits while he's eating just to switch it up. We're going for a ride and dinner tonight Mad, no fucking arguments."

She knew that she was being unreasonable, Aiden would be perfectly fine with Opie but it was just hard for her to hand him over to someone. It was so hard that she had already decided there was no way she was applying for another job until he was ready for school.

"Mad," Happy felt himself start to lose his patience, just slightly. He knew that she was a good mother but he also knew that didn't mean she needed to have Aiden within reaching distance twenty four hours a day.

"I don't know Hap, I just..."

"Fine," he snapped the word. "We need to go or that real estate bitch is going to complain and I'm going to think seriously about shooting her.

25 25 25

The house looked amazing on paper and in the pictures but once they were inside Madeline knew that it wasn't for them. It was... stuffy, not a place she could imagine raising her family. "You hate it," Happy stated.

"Do you like it?"

Honestly he didn't care where they lived, he'd adapt to any place. "Not if you don't like it."

"Well, we're running out of options," The real estate agent told them. "There aren't too many places that meet your specifications here in Charming. If you wanted to look in Lodi as well we might have more luck."

"No." It was Charming or it was nothing as far as Happy was concerned. His family needed to be close enough to the club house that they could get there immediately if there were any problems. "Find something else for us to look at."

"There is one place," the woman hesitated, "but it needs a lot of work. It's a foreclosure and there was some vandalism after the property was vacated. It's bank owned and at the lower level of your price range but remember what I said, it needs a lot of work."

"Let's see it." Happy told her.

"Right now?" The woman looked surprised but recovered quickly. "If you'll follow me it's only a few minutes ride."

"We can wait for another day if you've got to get to the clubhouse," Madeline told Happy softly.

"Let's go and look at it, I've got time." Happy reached out and ran his hand over Madeline's back. "We're going to find a place Mad."

The subtle changes in her were glaring to him. He chalked most of them up to being a new mother and the stress that she had to have been under when he was away. Jax had spoken of similar feelings with Tara and he'd asked Opie about how Donna was after the time that they'd spent apart when he was in Chino. It seemed normal that she'd have changed but he didn't exactly like it.

Madeline drove behind the real estate agent and gasped as they pulled up in front of the house. It was huge, Victorian style with three stories and a slanted roof. "Oh," she looked over at Happy and smiled. "Look at the trees." There were two in the front yard on either side of the walk way, both nearly as tall as the house. "I think that they're Redwoods."

"Could be," he didn't know shit about trees but he knew that smile. "Like what you see so far?"

"I do but she said it's a lot of work," Madeline bit down on her bottom lip. "The inside could be in shambles."

Happy didn't fight his grin. Who the hell said shambles anymore? "Doesn't matter, if you like it than we'll figure out how to fix it up for you."

"For us," Madeline corrected. "This is for us and our family Hap."

"I'll get Aiden, let's go and check it out," he told her. He carried the car seat with him up the walk, it was level and even though the grass needed some serious cutting. The bushes in front of the house were too overgrown for his liking too, plenty of places for someone to hide.

Madeline walked up on the porch and immediately pictured a porch swing where she could sit while watching Aiden and his possible siblings play. A smile crossed her face as the real estate agent opened the front door. The moment that she stepped inside the foyer she knew that this was the place but she tried to control her expression.

Happy followed Madeline through the house with Aiden asleep in the seat he was holding. He knew before she said a word that she wanted the house. He had to admit that it was nice but the agent hadn't lied, it needed a ton of work but it was doable.

After the complete tour he looked over at the agent, the woman seemed less intimidated by him than she had during previous tours. "Get the papers ready."

"What?" Madeline's eyes widened.

"You want it, right?"

"Yes."

"You heard her, get the papers ready," Happy told the woman.

"Okay, I'll do that," the agent looked pleased. "I will need some signatures to get this going and a deposit check."

"I've got the check book in Aiden's diaper bag," Madeline looked over to Happy. "Are you sure? It's a lot of work and..."

"I'll give the two of you a few minutes," the woman left them alone in what would be the master bedroom.

"I can see what work it's going to be, don't worry about that." There was a lot he could do himself and the rest of the guys would pitch in. Hell, that's what Prospects were for after all. What they couldn't do they'd hire one of the contractors in the area. "Is this the house you want?"

"Yes," she admitted.

"Then what's the problem Mad?"

"It's just... I..." she sighed as tears filled her eyes, "I don't know what's wrong with me."

Happy didn't know either but he wasn't going to say that. "You've just had a lot of shit on your shoulders Mad, that's over now. I'm here and not going anywhere."

"Okay," she wiped at her cheeks. "Sorry, I know you hate when I get all weepy."

"Yeah, don't make a habit of it. Come on, let's let this chick get to work on the papers and go to the club house and tell everyone about this place."

25 25 25

Happy had been in the chapel with Jax for nearly an hour. Madeline found herself watching the door, her nerves on edge. Was he going to have to go on a run? How long would he be gone? How dangerous was it? She always worried about these things but now it felt like the panic about it was going to swallow her whole.

She watched as Gemma sat across the room with Aiden in her arms, she'd basically grabbed him the moment that they walked in and Madeline wasn't sure she ever wanted to let him go. "She loves babies, misses them now that Thomas and Abel are bigger," it was rare that Piney spoke to her so Madeline turned her full attention to the man. It wasn't that they didn't get along, it was just how he was.

"I'm wondering if I'll ever get him back," she admitted with a laugh.

"She'll get her fill, eventually." The man took a swig out of the glass in front of him. "You want a nip? Looks like you could use one?"

"I'm still breast feeding."

"You can pump and dump," Juice observed without looking up from the laptop in front of him. "The alcohol will only be in the next batch, it's what Tara used to do."

"I was hoping you weren't talking from personal experience," Piney quipped and reached for another glass. "Get over here."

She moved to sit at the bar, accepted the tequila and downed it. The burning was followed by an almost immediate sense of relief. "Maybe I did need that."

"Honey, you look like you could use a whole bottle," Piney patted her hand and poured another. "Ain't easy, is it?"

"What?"

"Worrying all the damn time, don't deny it. I can see it in your face. Reminds me of my Donna," a sad smile crossed his face, "that girl could worry with the best of them but I bet you're giving her a run for her money. Want to know what I used to tell her?"

"Sure," Madeline replied. It was rare that anyone spoke of Donna and she'd always been curious about Kenny and Ellie's mother especially with all the time that she'd been spending with them.

"Fucking relax," the old man cackled. "Everything that you're worried about is still going to be there in the morning, take a night off from it. Like tonight, leave that boy with Op. Go out and get silly with your man, well as silly as Happy can get."

Madeline had truly intended to find a way to tell Happy they should postpone the ride and dinner despite his command that she not argue, maybe the tequila had loosened her up but what had seemed like a bad idea now felt like it might be just what they needed. "I think that I'll do that," she told him.

"Good, I hate to waste my breath," he winked at her and poured her another healthy shot.

25 25 25

Happy looked over at Opie and Jax, his emotions hidden but inside he was thrilled at what they were offering. With Bobby gone Chibs had been taking over more and more of the Secretary work for the club and had found that he was pretty damn good at it so that left a spot for a new SAA.

Happy had figured that Tig would be a lock for his previous position, the main reason that he'd been replaced by Chibs had been because Jax needed a regime that was all his own when the change in leader ship happened.

"It's yours if you want it Hap, I know that it's a big choice and I didn't want to blindside you with it. Figure you might need some time to think on it," Jax lit a cigarette.

"Don't need time," Happy had known his answer as soon as he knew where the conversation was headed. "Would be my pleasure."

Both men smiled widely. "Told you that he wouldn't need time to think," Opie nodded his head. "We'll bring it to a vote during Church."

"Celebrate it on Friday," Jax added.

Happy grinned. "Sounds good to me," he hadn't been to most of the parties since he came home but a night for him and Madeline to celebrate sounded good. "Think Neeta would mind watching one more kid on Friday night?"

"Think Maddy's going to let him out of her sight that long?" Opie questioned with a smile. "I've been noticing that she's a little mama lion over him lately."

"Yeah, she's..." Happy hesitated, he wasn't one for discussing his business but the two men with him were both fathers, both had Old Ladies so maybe they were the best ones to ask about the situation. "She's been... different since I came home. It's not bad, it's just..."

"It happens Hap," Opie's expression turned serious. "And like most shit, it's our fault. Donna was completely different when I came home."

"That's really comforting Op," Jax shook his head. "Look Man, Maddy's a strong woman. She just probably needs some time to adjust, just like you do. It's rough to come home. Nothing seems the same."

"He's right about that, just give her some time. You're doing everything you can. Just got to let her know that you're there for her."

"Going to bring Aiden to you tonight if that's still cool."

"Bring him," Opie's eyes lit up. "My kids might actually spend some time out of their rooms if he's there."

25 25 25

"We need to talk," Happy stood in front of Madeline. "Walk with me." He held out his hand to her.

Madeline took his hand and followed him outside to the picnic table. "Just tell me," she kept her voice calm. "How long will you be gone?"

"I'm not going anywhere Mad, that's not what this is about. Go on, sit down."

"I'd rather stand," her mind raced ahead, imagined the worse. Was this him leaving her? Was that why he'd agreed so quickly to buy the house? Because he wanted somewhere nice for her and Aiden when he was out of the picture?

Happy bit back a sigh. If she wanted to stand, she could stand it didn't make much of a difference to him. "Had a talk with Jax and Opie, there are going to be some changes in the club."

"Changes?"

"Chibs is going to take Bobby's spot," he watched her eyes go sad for a moment at the mention of the fallen Son. Shit, he'd never even thought that Bobby's death might have had an impact on her, she'd sure spent enough time in the kitchen with him. "You been out to see Bobby's grave?"

"I go once a week," Madeline admitted, "take him some flowers and sometimes I'll leave a couple of muffins. Gemma made me copies of all his recipies, said that he'd have liked me having them."

"I'm sorry Mad, never thought about how much you much miss him." Happy felt like a pretty shitty Old Man at that moment.

"You had a lot of other things on your mind Hap, it's okay. Besides, it's how he wanted to go. He talked about it a few times, that he didn't want to die in his sleep or an old man in pain. He wanted to go out a warrior and he did."

Happy nodded, that sounded like Bobby. "Like I was saying, the SAA slot is going to be open once Chibs takes over Secretary officially. I'm going to be SAA."

The news knocked Madeline back a bit, she knew what an SAA did because Kozik had explained it to her, simply put it was the SAA's job to protect the president at all costs. A SAA would gladly die in the line of fire to make sure that The President and club continued. Now that was going to be her Old Man, as if she didn't worry enough. "That's... that's a little scary Hap."

"I'll be careful, always am. It's an honor Mad, you know that. And you know that if anything were to ever happen to me, and it won't, that the club will take care of you and our family."

"I know," she said simply, however knowing that didn't make the fact any easier to swallow. "This is what you want?"

"Yeah, it is." He hadn't given it much thought before but now that the offer was on the table he knew damn well it was what he wanted. He'd never imagined when he put on the Prospect cut all those years ago that he'd end up where he was now. "But if you don't want me to do it, I won't." The words surprised him as much as they did her.

"You'd do that? For me?"

"You shouldn't have to ask or be surprised Girl, ain't shit I wouldn't do for you or our son."

Madeline drew in a deep breath and told the voice in her head that was chanting to tell him not to take it to shut the fuck up. She knew that somewhere deep down it would plant a seed of resentment if she did, that over time that seed would grow and they would never be the same as they were before she spoke the words. "I think that you're going to make an amazing SAA Hap."

His smile was the answer that she needed to know she'd said the right thing. Whatever misgivings she might have had would remain buried inside of her mind, she would support her man even if his choice terrified her because that was what a good Old Lady did.

"Thank you," he pulled her to him and wrapped her in his arms tight. "Gonna be a party to celebrate on Friday, Neeta's going to watch the kids. She doesn't have a problem taking care of Aiden too."

"Good because it'd be kind of awkward to carry a baby around a packed club house," Madeline had to smile at the image. "Is Opie going to watch him tonight still?"

"That's the plan, if you're up for it."

"I'm up for it," she promised.

Happy leaned in and kissed her deeply. He pulled back after a second. "Have you been drinking Mad?"

"Just a few shots of tequila with Piney. Don't worry, I've got the breast milk thing covered." Juice's offered pump and dump solution had gotten the Tara seal of approval. "I just really would like to go home and get changed first, put on something nicer."

"Something nicer with nothing underneath?" Happy asked with a hopeful expression.

"You're going to have to wait and find out for yourself."

"I can live with that," Happy slid his hands down to rest on her hips. "Let's get out of here so you can do what you need to do. I'll get Aiden's shit ready for Opie's."

"Sounds good," Madeline replied and it did. "I love you."

"Love you more," he promised with another kiss.


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: You all know that I don't own any of the characters that I just like to play with.

A/N: You are remain amazing, the reviews and follows and favorites for this story just make my day over and over again. Here's a bit of a light chapter, some partying and quality time between the new Samcro SAA and his Old Lady. I figure they needed a nice night out like all new parents do :)

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

"Girl, you better quit worrying and go!" Neeta motioned towards the door. "And I really hope that you're changing first."

"What's wrong with my outfit?" Madeline questioned as she glanced down at her outfit of black pants, high heeled black boots and a black lace tank top.

Neeta just snorted in response, "smart girl like you should be able to figure it out, but go on. Suit yourself."

Madeline grabbed her purse, "there's nothing wrong with my outfit. You've got my cell number if anything and I mean anything."

"Child, I'm about to boot you out of that door. Just go." Neeta actually shooed her out of the door, Madeline went gladly. She was meeting Happy at the club, he'd been there working on his bike. She'd taken Aiden to Jax and Tara's place.

The minute that she pulled in the lot she spotted Gemma and Luann in the parking lot. "What in the hell are you wearing?" Luann screeched, "this is a party not a freaking parent teacher conference."

"This is what you'd wear to a parent teacher conference?" Madeline raised an eyebrow at the former porn star. "Seriously?"

"If I had kids, sure. You're a luck girl, come into the office I figured that we might have some wardrobe issues with you, I've got the perfect thing for you."

"There's no point in arguing," Gemma told her with a smirk, "besides, you'll thank her when Happy sees your in it."

"I really don't think..."

"Listen up," Gemma's tone was no nonsense. "You've had some kind of a stick up your ass for a while now and you need to pull it out. I get all the stress and shit that you've been through. I've lived it, so has she. Shit, she's still living it. You got your man right in front of you, keep acting the way you are and he'll stray."

"I have not..."

Luanne cut her off, "Oh honey, you have. I get it, I know how scared you are. I do, I really do but Happy loves you like crazy and you love him. Quit worrying, it's going to give you wrinkles, now come on and get changed. These guys ain't going to wait all night."

26 26

She wasn't showing up, Happy grabbed a bottle from the bar and opened it. He took a long swig and lit a cigarette. This was all on him, he'd known that something was off with her. He should have sat her down and made her spill her guts, but he hadn't. Instead he'd piled more shit on her by taking the SAA position when he knew that she wasn't one hundred percent behind it, he'd wanted it. Fuck, she probably thought that he wanted it more than her and Aiden.

"Holy Shit," Opie spewed beer all over the bar which made the prospect, Murphy, let out a long suffering sigh. His real name was Keith but Murphy's law seemed to apply to him because anything that could go wrong for him, did. "Hap, look at that girl."

"Not interested in no bitch," Happy downed a long swallow of the Jack Daniels. "I'm about to go."

"Go? This is your party," his friend protested, "and I think if you go that your girl is going to get upset and that would be a shame."

"She ain't even fucking here Op," Happy slammed the bottle down on the bar.

"She's..."

"I'm right here," Madeline cleared her throat and held her breath as Happy turned to face her. For a moment he just stared, she clasped her hands in front of her.

The woman in front of him had Madeline's face, her hair and body but he'd never seen her dressed like that before. She favored more sedate clothes, tank tops and jeans with the occasional pair of heels but she much preferred her flats or flip flops. Yet here she was standing in front of him in a short skirt, too short for his tastes but that was another story, with a top that tied around her neck and displayed her breasts in a way that told him he'd probably have to take out someone's eyes before the night was over. Her heels were as thin as an icepick and probably as sharp as some of his knives.

Opie let out a chuckle, "and this is the part where I excuse myself and the two of you barely notice."

"You hate it," Madeline finally found her voice.

"Mad," he took a step closer to her, "I don't hate it." His voice was low, so low that she needed to lean in to be sure that she could hear his words. "Just didn't ever think that I'd see you like this." She was beautiful, but she was always beautiful to him.

"I had on something different when I got here," she admitted with a small smile. "But Gemma and Luann found me outside. I think that this came straight from Cara Cara actually, I just really hope it was new and not gently worn."

A smirk crossed his face, there was his girl. "You did this for me," he observed.

"Figured it's your party and you should have an Old Lady worthy of showing off," she stepped closer to him. "And I also owe you an apology."

"An apology?" Happy frowned as his hands moved to her hips. "Fuck you talking about?"

"I know that since you came home, things have changed. I've changed. I don't want to push you away. I don't want you to leave me. I love you, I love our family and our life and I..." her words were cut off as his mouth crashed down on hers.

She barely even heard the wolf whistles or cat calls from the other guys as she buried her hands in his cut and pressed herself against him. "Relax," he told her. He couldn't remember the last time she'd launched into a nervous rant like that but it had been early in their relationship. "Fucking love you, love our family. If things have been different, that's on me. I'm the one who changed everything."

"No, it's on me Hap. I need to relax," a smile crossed her face, "or in Piney's words fucking relax."

"You talked to Piney?"

"Piney talked to me," she corrected. "and I'm glad he did."

Happy was surprised by that, Piney normally kept his opinions to himself. He'd have to thank the cranky old man, who would likely tell him to fuck himself in response. "You good with being here tonight?"

"Yes," Madeline stretched up to kiss him. "I'm going to get drunk and let you take advantage of me just not in the room in front of everyone like Kozik's new friend over there," she crinkled her nose in disgust as her eyes went to the man who was standing against a near by wall with a woman kneeling in front of him.

"Damn, I was really looking forward to that," Happy laughed when she punched him hard in the side.

"Ass," she told him. "Come on, let's get a drink and celebrate."

"You called Neeta to check on Aiden yet?"

"Twice," she admitted, her cheeks turned a little bit red. "I couldn't help myself."

"You wouldn't be you if you could," he leaned in and kissed her again. "Let's get you Jack Daniels, straight."

"Ugh, my taste buds already hate me."

26 26 26

Happy shook his head as Madeline and Juice played a drunken game of pool. "Nice to see that," Kozik spoke from next to him, "the idiot hasn't been spending much time with her since you went in."

"Why not?" Happy questioned.

"No clue Brother, probably didn't want to tempt her into using her prison clause with him," the blonde man smiled. "Or it could be that he was just too far up his girl's ass to notice anyone else."

Juice's girl, the teacher that Madeline had worked with, Happy hadn't given her much thought and she hadn't mentioned her. "Where is she?"

"Hawaii, been there about six months. Her parents are there apparently, she's been helping them out with some family crap."

"For six months?" Happy took another sip of his beer.

"That's what I said but..." Kozik shrugged. "Who knows?"

"Yeah," Happy nodded in agreement. "Never did thank you for helping keep an eye on her."

"She made it easy, hell she never asked for shit."

Happy smiled slightly, that was Madeline through and through. "Gonna need your help again," he told his friend.

"You planning on getting locked up again?"

"Nah, with the house," Happy shook his head. "Place is all but falling apart. Good foundation though, it's fixable."

"Couldn't have picked a place that wasn't falling apart?" Kozik grinned. "Stupid question, it's the one that she wanted right?"

"How could I not give her that?" He finished his beer, an eager crow eater rushed forward to replace it but never caught his eye. "Whatever happened to your stoner chick?"

Kozik looked over with obvious surprise. Happy asking about his relationship was like stumbling into an alternate universe where he didn't quite understand the rules. "She was cool, really cool but it was just... a way to pass the time for both of us."

"And she wasn't..."

"Don't say it Brother," Kozik got up from his seat, "don't."

Happy watched his oldest friend walk away from him. He wasn't even sure why he'd brought up Kozik's ex from Tacoma or tried to, shit he must be getting soft in his old age. "Hey!" He shouted after Kozik.

"What?" The man turned around, anger obvious on his face.

"Wanna hit the ring?"

"Fuck yeah." Kozik flashed a quick smile. "Get ready for an ass kicking."

26 26 26

The fighters circled one another like animals in the wild; Happy was sleek and deadly looking, Kozik slightly buffer with a smirk on his face as they sized one another up. The crowd was ready, cheers and shouts filled the air but still they continued the pre-fight dance, neither ready to land the first blow.

Madeline was just outside of the ring, her eyes locked on Happy. The time that he'd spent inside had only improved his body which she hadn't really thought possible. He'd been such a perfect specimen before but now he was leaner yet built more, the muscle definition in his stomach gave her a flash of heat all over her body.

She watched the crowd as much as the fighters; maybe it was immature of her but she took a sense of satisfaction in the awe struck looks that the crow eaters were giving him. He was hers, from the top of his tattooed bald head to the tips of his toes, and that gave a better rush than everything that she'd drank.

"Kick his ass," she called out though she had no ill will towards Kozik. It was quite the opposite, she really liked the man but this was a fight and there was only one person she wanted to come out on top.

After what seemed like an eternity Kozik finally threw the first punch. Madeline sucked in a deep breath as his fist connected with Happy's jaw but he didn't even flinch. He responded with a shot to Kozik's ribs that sent the man several paces.

From there it was an all out brawl, neither man held back and in just a few minutes both were bleeding. The sight of Happy's blood never sat well with her, next to her Opie let out a chuckle. "Don't worry," he told her.

"I'm not," she replied with a smile.

"Liar," he slid a friendly arm around her shoulder. "You holding up okay?"

"Never better, thanks for taking Aiden the other day."

"Don't worry about it, love that kid. Took him to the store to get milk and he's a real chick magnet, I might have to borrow him. My kids are too old to attract the ladies anymore."

"Glad to know my son might have had a hand in getting you laid Op, life is now complete." Madeline kept her eyes on the ring as Happy landed a particularly brutal punch to Kozik's face. Blood spurted from the blonde man's obviously broken nose.

"And now we break it up," Opie declared. "Better go get a first aid kit," he advised before climbing into the ring.

It took Opie, Chibs and Jax to break the two men apart but they embraced, both laughing despite the pain that they had to be in. Madeline remained ring side, waited because she knew the moment would come when Happy looked over for her. He motioned her into the ring and she climbed between the ropes carefully.

Despite her careful steps the heels weren't exactly designed for walking on the surface of the ring. Madeline stumbled and steadied herself but before she'd even done so fully Happy was at her side. "Easy Girl, don't go falling and showing everyone what's under that skirt. That's mine."

"Damn right it is," he grabbed her ass to prove his point and brought his mouth down to hers for a light kiss.

"Let's go and get you cleaned up," Madeline glanced over and saw that three eager crow eaters had Kozik surrounded.

"Let's go home and handle it, handle a few other things too."

Madeline didn't ask if he was okay to ride, she didn't have too. "Sounds perfect to me," she replied, "if you're sure that you want to leave your party."

"I'm looking for a better more private party," he rubbed his hands over her ass. "You up for it?"

"Pretty sure that I can handle whatever you're up to," she replied as she pressed her body against his. Her eyebrows rose at the feeling of him hard and ready against her belly. "Is that for me or because of the fight?"

"What the fuck do you think?"

Madeline responded by pressing herself closer to him, his hands tightened on her ass. "I think that we might not make it back to the house, in fact... getting to the room might just be a stretch."

She gasped as he lifted her off of the ground right there in the middle of the ring, her legs wrapped tight around his waist. "Hap?"

"Shut up," he told her gruffly and smashed his mouth into hers. It was a kiss of passion, of possession and of love. There had never been a moment when she doubted he loved her. Moments like this where he displayed it in public were becoming more frequent but were still rare and she never took one for granted. Her legs tightened like a vice, her arms locked around his neck.

She breathed his name against his lips. "Happy, please..."

He chuckled, the rumble of his chest set every nerve in her body on fire. "Please what?" He was toying with her, they both knew it.

"Fuck me," Madeline replied without hesitation. "And I mean fuck me, hard."

If he was surprised at how vulgar the statement was for her, he didn't allow it to show. Happy smacked her ass hard with both hands. "Let's go, right fucking now."

26 26 26

"Isn't this Kozik's room?" Madeline questioned as Happy pushed the door shut and locked it.

He glanced around, grinned. "Yeah," he reached out for her and pressed her against the door. "He'll be too busy getting patched up to use it so..." he trailed off and let his mouth move down to her neck. His teeth weren't gentle and Madeline let out a small moan.

"So to the victor go the spoils?" she questioned, proud that her mind could still work to form a sentence with his hands moving down her body like that.

He let out a low chuckle. "I like that, now shut up."

"Shut up or make my mouth useful?" she questioned with a devious smile. It had been a long time since they'd been this playful with one another, since before he'd gotten locked up. And now with Aiden in the house their time together was more rushed, their son didn't sleep very well or long.

"What the fuck do you think?" Happy moved his hand up to grip her hair, his eyes darkened at the sight of her sliding down to her knees. Her smile was devious, she knew what reaction he would have.

Her hands pulled at his belt, ripped it from the loops of his jeans in a smooth motion before popping the button on his jeans. He was already hard, was always hard for her. Madeline kept her eyes on him, she knew what he liked.

Fucking red headed devil. His red headed devil, he kept his hand in her hair and groaned at the feeling of the warmth of her mouth. "Come on Girl," he urged, his voice even rougher than usual.

Madeline knew what he wanted, he didn't need to tell her. She took him in deeper, his fingers tightened against her scalp. When he began to set the rhythm she let him, took him even when she was sure that she couldn't until he dragged her up to her feet. "You didn't come?"

"Not ready for that yet," his hands settled on her hips. When he ripped the material she cried out. "I'll buy you another one."

"What am I going to wear home?"

"You really care about that right now?" He cocked an eyebrow at her as his fingers played over the lace of her tiny red panties.

"Fuck no," she moaned as his fingers slid beneath the material. "Mmm," her hips began to move in slow circles against him.

"I think you're thinking way too much, been doing it for too long." It was a conclusion he'd reached days after coming home. "That shit stops now." He brushed just a finger tip against her core.

Madeline's head smashed back into the door. "Hap."

"Nope," he grinned. "Taking my time with you." He really was shitty as an Old Man at times, he realized that at the delighted look that crossed her face when he said the words. "C'mere." He lifted her by the waist, carried her to the bed to kneel down before her.

"Hap." Her hands were already twisting in the sheets, sheets still rumpled from Kozik being in them. It occurred to Happy that maybe she was going to protest his choice of location so there was only one thing he could do.

He lowered his mouth to her bare inner thigh, bit down lightly. She arched her back off the bed, if there was a protest inside her it was gone. She was gone, far gone. Her body was moving on its own, desperate sounds spilled from her throat and it was fuel to the fire inside of him.

Happy had barely touched her yet she was soaking wet. The scent of her arousal was better than anything in the world. He tore at her panties and tossed the material over his shoulder forgotten as his mouth closed around her core.

Once, twice, three times he drove her right to the brink, felt the cramps in her stomach and between her legs but each time he pulled back just enough to have her coming back down. She made sounds of severe protest, her hands unable to find a grip on his smooth head. She cursed him and he laughed, pushed her thighs even farther apart.

This time he allowed her the release that she sought. Madeline heard herself let out a rough sob and when his mouth came up to cover hers all she could taste was herself on his lips. "Please, please."

"Turn over," he nipped down on her bottom lip and slid off of her so that she could do so.

Madeline looked over her shoulder at him, her heart pumped so hard that she was quite sure she'd simply explode. His length pressed against her entrance, she moved back and he was inside of her.

They moved together, fast and rough. Each time that she thought she simply couldn't take any more, it turned out that she could. "Hap, please. Please."

"Come on Girl, fucking come." In the heat of the moment he brought his hand down hard on her ass. He'd never hit her like that before, he stilled and swore. "Mad."

"Fuck yeah," she tossed her head back. "Again."

"You serious Girl?"

"Felt good, really good. Please. Please. Please."

Happy lost all of his control and began to slam in and out of her, his body tightening at each deep thrust. "Come on Baby, come the fuck on."

Madeline threw her head back once more, her hair cascading over her back. "Happy! Happy!" Her voice echoed off of the walls followed by a scream that had to have drawn the attention of most of the clubhouse. She collapsed forward from the force of her climax, he barely managed to keep from crushing her as he leaned forward on his hands.

After a few more deep strokes inside of her he couldn't resist following her over the edge. "Oh God." He didn't know what else to say as he fell down on the bed next to her. "Mad?"

"Am I still alive?" she turned her head to him with a grin.

"Better be, I ain't cold packing the next round." Playfully he smacked her ass lightly. "Never thought you had it in you, liking being spanked."

"Well, I had to expand my horizons when you were locked up."

"What the fuck?"

"Porn, watching not performing," she clarified. "Luann was real helpful sending over stuff. At first it was pretty vanila, she used to laugh at me but then that wasn't doing it for me anymore so... we tried some other stuff, kinkier stuff." Her cheeks were as red as she'd ever seen them. "I've imagined you doing a lot of naughty things to me."

"Make a list, we'll do everyone." He promised.

"Nap now?"

"Fuck a nap, we're staying here tonight."

"What about Kozik?"

"He ain't invited."

Madeline laughed and moved closer to him. "I love you."

"I know."

"Asshole," she slapped her hand against his chest. "I'm trying to be sweet here."

"I can still taste how sweet you are," he pointed out and earned another slap. "Keep on beating me up and I'm going to file domestic violence charges." Happy pulled her close. "So just relax, get some sleep. I'll be waking you up soon enough."

"Promise?"

"I promise."


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.

A/N: Once again thank you ALL for your reviews, favorites, follows and just for reading this story. It means so much to me because I truly love these characters. And you are all awesome. We've had a few chapters of settled down, quiet family time but now the reality of the life that they live is about to set back in. Enjoy 3

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

"No Aiden, don't put that in your mouth." Madeline swiped the set of keys out of her son's hand before he could jam them in his mouth. "JUICE!" Her voice echoed off of the walls and the man came running in. "Don't leave your keys on Aiden's walker table."

At eight months the little boy was all over like horse shit, at least that's what she'd overheard Happy telling Chibs the day before. Five months had now passed since his release, four since they'd started renovating the new house and now it was time for them to actually move in.

Madeline had insisted she didn't need to take Aiden to Neeta's, he could keep her company as she unpacked each room. Now she was doubting her sanity and thinking about calling the woman to come and get him.

"Shit, sorry Maddy. SHIT!" He smacked himself in the forehead for cursing in front of the boy.

"Fifty cents," Madeline told him. "I already unpacked the jar on the kitchen counter. Figure little man is going to get at least fifty bucks from his uncles today." The swear jar was something that she'd read on line and it had helped keep her son from being exposed to the more colorful language that the guys were capable of.

"I'll pay, I promise." And she knew that he would, they all did. "Say Maddy, have you heard anything from Lia?"

"No Juice, not since an email last month."

"I um... well I brought a ticket to Hawaii," he said the words in a rush. "Spoke to Jax, he can spare me for like a week, said maybe I'll come back without my head up my ass."

"She must be excited," Madeline didn't know why her friend wasn't emailing her, calling her or returning her texts. The only thing that she could think of was that the club had gotten to be too much for her and leaving was her way to break all ties.

"She doesn't know, I mean I tried to tell her but... hell, I might be flying all the way there to get told to fuck off. SHIT!"

"Make that a dollar Juice," she told him with a small smile. "I hope that's not the case."

"Me either," he shrugged his shoulders. "But at least I'll get to go to Hawaii, that's pretty kick a... cool, pretty cool."

"You'll have to bring me back something, and something for Aiden."

"Yeah, definitely. Leave the television and stuff, I'll hook it all up later."

27 27 27

Happy ached in places he didn't know could ache. He hadn't realized just how much shit Madeline had accumulated in the house. It was his shit too, he was surprised to see stuff from his mother's house in Bakersfield and she'd explained that she'd cleared the place out why he was away, kept the stuff that she thought would mean something. But even once it was all inside the place still looked half empty.

"Hey," Madeline came to perch on the arm of the chair that he was sitting in. "You want another beer?"

"I want a full body transplant," he told her.

"I'm fresh out of bodies like yours, we should have hired movers."

"I look like the type of guy who needs to hire a bunch of guys to carry my shit?"

"You look exhausted, you and the rest of the guys." Madeline ran her hand over his head. "I thought that they were going to have to take Chibs to the hospital."

"Threw his back out moving that fucking couch in," he glared over at the offensive piece of furniture. "Did we really need a couch the size of Alaska?"

"I really liked it and it's big enough for us to curl up on," she winked at him.

"Never thought I'd say this, but not tonight. Fuck, maybe you should just get my gun and shoot me. Wait, where the hell are my guns?"

"Upstairs in the safe," she replied.

"We don't need a gun safe Mad," it was a conversation that they'd been over a time or two before. He'd tried to explain that the time spent opening the safe would be a waste of time if someone broke in.

"Makes me feel better now that Aiden's ready to start walking." Her expression left no room for argument. When it came to

"He just started crawling," Happy pointed out. "You get all that baby proof shit up? Am I going to be able to open the toilet?"

She laughed, remembered his frustration the first time that she'd put the lock on the lid and he'd actually just torn off the whole lid because he said that he couldn't get it open. "I didn't put that on, I promised I wouldn't."

"That's something," he looked around the room. "You did good with all this decorating shit. Aiden sleeping?"

"Out like a light," she confirmed, "all tucked away in his brand new bedroom. Juice hooked up the baby monitors so we can see him from our room, we've got cable too. I think even the porn channels."

"Retard is good for something," he chuckled as she elbowed him. "You ready to bed?"

"You think you can make it up the stairs?" she joked as she got up and offered him a hand.

"Really funny," he rose to his feet. "You happy?"

"No, you're Happy. I'm Maddy, did you hit your head or something?"

"Leave it to me to marry a fucking smart mouthed bitch," he pulled her towards him. "Shower and then bed."

"How about food? You want me to make you something?"

"Call for pizza." Happy winced as he took a step, he might not have hit his head but he had given his knee a good knock getting a book case up the stairs to the third floor.

"I will," Madeline ran her hand over his back. "I'll bring it up to you in bed," she'd bring an ice pack too and dig out the pain killers she knew that she had somewhere. "And to answer your earlier question, I have never been happier in my life."

27 27 27

The persistent sound of the prepay ringing woke Happy from his drug induced sleep, next to him Madeline didn't even stir. "Yeah?" He glanced at the clock, just after three in the morning. If something wasn't wrong he was going to put his foot straight up the callers ass.

"Hey," the voice belonged to Jax. "Sorry to call so late but we've got a problem."

"What's up?" Happy sat up, swung his legs off of the bed and cursed under his breath. The pain in his knee was worse than before.

"Whiskey just called," Jax let out a sigh, "someone hit the Indian Hills club house hard. Fire bomb, most of the patches and pretty much everyone else are dead. Fuckers barricaded the doors from the outside. Whiskey, Twist and Master managed to get out through a window, tried to go back in.

"We know who?" Happy was already getting dressed, the phone between his shoulder and ear.

"Yeah, looks like it was Mayans."

"Sanctioned by Alvarez?" Things had been very peaceful between the two groups for the past few years, nothing really surprised Happy anymore but he'd thought that the man had as big a desire for peace as Jax did.

"We're about to find out, got a meeting set with him. Need you and Op with me."

"No doubt, I'll be at the club house in five."

"I'd call a lock down but with what just happened I don't think the best idea is to put all the women and kids in one place. I've got Kozik heading over to keep an eye on Mad and Aiden. Tig's going to my place and everyone else is going to stay here and make sure everything is alright."

"Thanks man, see you in five."

"The safe combination is 10-09-28," Madeline said in a sleepy voice. "Do I even want to know?"

"I'll tell you later, Kozik will be outside keeping watch."

"He can come in."

"I'd rather have him outside watching the place," he moved over to the safe and took out his guns. With a sigh he took out a third, Madeline sighed as well. "I know Mad but just humor me. Besides, you're not even going to need it."

"Fine," she held out her hand. "But if I shoot Kozik by mistake no one better say one freaking word."

"Tig would probably become your personal slave."

"Hmm," Madeline considered it, "I've always wanted a personal slave," her expression turned serious. "Come home."

"I will Baby, promise." This was the first extreme situation since he'd come home and he'd been expecting it, not Indian Hills burning but something that would take him away and put him in danger. "I'll set the alarm. Go back to sleep."

"Yeah, that'll happen," Madeline pulled off the covers. "I'm going to make some coffee, help Kozik stay awake."

"No worrying," he told her sternly. "I love you."

"Love you too," Madeline walked out of the room and down the stairs with him. She closed the front door behind him and set the alarm. It was going to be a long night.

27 27 27

Happy looked at the burned down remains of what had been the home Alvarez shared with his family, a son and daughter if he remembered right. The sight of toys, much like the ones Aiden already had but was still too small for, burned and twisted from the flames sent a cold rage through his body.

It wasn't hard to picture his own home, new home, the same way. "Jesus Christ," Jax raked a hand through his hair as he watched the firefighters knock down walls to make sure all the flames were out.

"Same MO as Indian Hills, both doors were blocked," Opie walked back over to them. "Neighbor says that Alvarez and the kids got out, his Old Lady didn't at least that she saw. No clue where he is but she says that she saw Mayan's outside right before the fire started."

"Sounds like a coup," Happy observed. Who the fuck went after a man and his family? What sort of man could sleep at night after doing that? He knew that he'd done some fucked up shit in his time, hell he'd done things that still came back to him in dreams occasionally but he'd done them straight up, man against man not going after innocent women and children.

"What do we do Jax?" Opie looked to his friend.

"I've got no idea, I can't call in Tacoma because what if they hit there and they've got no protection. Ain't enough Nomads to spread between all the charters." Jax stared at the gutted house. "Can't call a lock down because that'll make it like shooting fish in a barrel if they decide to attack."

27 27 27

Kozik lit a cigarette, leaned back in the chair on the front porch and dug his wallet out of the inner pocket of his cut. He opened the worn leather, might be time for an upgrade, and pulled out a picture that he hadn't let himself look at in a long time. Even if he didn't look he hadn't been able to throw it out, burn it or get rid of it.

When he heard the front door open he slid the picture back and pulled out his gun. "Jesus Maddy, what part of stay in the house didn't you get?"

"Brought you some coffee," she held out a thermos and a mug to him. "It's chilly out here tonight."

"Thanks but get your ass back inside before I've got Happy's boot so far up my ass I can taste it. You got all the doors and windows locked?"

"And my gun, might just throw it at anyone who gets past you because I figure my odds of hitting them are better."

Kozik let out a laugh. "Get your ass inside Madeline."

"I need a cigarette first, fucking stress. I managed to quit and now, right back to it."

"Smoke it fast," he told her understanding that she wouldn't want to smoke in the house with Aiden.

"I need a cigarette from you, I usually grab one of Hap's but..." she shrugged her shoulders as he pulled out a pack. "Does this shit ever really stop Koz?"

"No," he said almost sadly. "Slows down but never stops, there's always something coming."

"You think that's why Lia took off on Juice? Because she couldn't handle it?"

"Who knows why? She might not even know for sure, sometimes... even when you love someone you just... can't take what their life is even if you knew everything from the start. Other times, people just leave. No reason, no explanation you just wake up one day and they're gone."

Madeline wondered if she'd just touched a nerve with him as he handed her a lit cigarette. "Do you think that Happy worries I'll leave?"

"It has to have crossed his mind a time or two, but he knows that you love him. If anyone is going to stick I think that it'll be you. The two of you, you're damn good together. I knew it was something special when he wouldn't bring you around at first, so damn secretive." Kozik let out a laugh and poured himself a cup of coffee from the thermos.

"I thought that... when I met him I never pictured that I'd be here. I didn't come back to Charming expecting to find anything," she took a long drag off of the cigarette, "and I found everything I wanted. I found Happy. I have my son now, it's just... sometimes I think I'll wake up and it'll all be a dream."

"It's not a dream Maddy, it's real."

"What if something happens? What if he doesn't come back?" It was her worst fear, she was sure that she couldn't live without him at least not in the way she was supposed to.

"Hey," Kozik shook his head, "he's coming back. He always comes back to you, doesn't he?"

"Yeah," she took another drag, "so far." Madeline tossed the cigarette. "Thanks for listening Kozik."

"Anytime Sweetheart," he smiled at her as she started for the door. "Lock that behind you."

27 27 27

"Come on Aiden, eat your green beans. They're yummy, oh so yummy." Madeline did the song and dance she basically had to do every meal to get him to eat. His tastes were particular and ever changing, she'd been convinced that he was going to be an easy child when he was a baby but now she realized that he had a lot of his father in him.

A knock on the back door alerted her to Phil's presence. He was obviously there to give Kozik a break. "Hey," he said as she opened the door. "Just wanted to let you know I'm here. Kozik is heading back to the club house to get some sleep. Probably best that you just stay in the house for the day unless there's something you absolutely have to do."

"I've got enough to keep me busy here," there was still unpacking to be done. "Any word?"

Phil shook his head. "Nothing yet."

"Let me know if you need anything, I'll make extra for lunch."

"Thanks," a smile crossed his face. "You wouldn't happen to be making any banana bread today would you?"

She'd had no intention of baking but the hopeful look on his face changed her mind. "I think that I can handle that."

"Great, I'll be out front."

Madeline occupied herself with baking, making sure that Aiden got enough food in him not to starve and cleaning up the mess that he seemed to make everywhere even though he couldn't walk around the house yet. It was hectic, a little nerve wracking but she wouldn't trade it for the word, in fact she'd been thinking that it was time to seriously start trying to give Aiden a little brother or sister.

She couldn't help but wonder if Happy remembered what he said about having more kids, if he'd meant it or if it was just something to say. Would whatever was going on now change his mind?

Madeline put slices of bread on a plate with plenty of butter for Phil and filled the thermos with coffee again, it had to be damn boring to sit out on the porch all day. She put the plate and coffee on a tray and added the mornings paper, she didn't know how entertaining it would be but at least it was something.

She was just about to open the front door and take the tray out when she noticed a car that she didn't recognize parked across the street. Something about it set the hair on her arms on edge. Carefully she set the tray down and backed away from the door.

27 27 27

Happy had always seen a leader when he looked at Alvarez, now he saw a broken man. They sat in the kitchen of his aunt's house, the sound of the television playing cartoons in the next room nearly drowned out the man's voice. It had taken them a while to find him, but in the end he'd been the one to reach out to Jax.

"We'd just sat down to dinner, like every night. Phones off, television off, just the family talking about the day. Monica was serving the food when I heard a window break, I knew that something wasn't right. It wasn't some kids fucking around, no one fucks around with my house. It was right after that when I smelled the smoke. After that, it was just... fucking panic. The kids were screaming, Monica was screaming and we couldn't get out the back door. The front was already blocked by flames. There was no where to go but out the window. Zoe got scared," he said referring to his daughter, "she took off running towards the fire. Monica went after her, she got Zoe back into the kitchen but the ceiling of the hall... it came down on her before she could get back in. I tried to get her, I swear that I tried to get her but the fire... she burned alive."

"You have our sympathy Alvarez, and our friendship." Jax took the lead. "We will do everything that we can to find out who did this because the person who hurt your family hurt ours."

"Rico," Alvarez said simply. "Rico Santos, been with me since he was a teenager."

"He's your SAA, or the Mayan equivalent of it." Opie observed.

"Just like the Sons have been looking for legit ways to earn, so have the Mayans. It means less money but also less risk. Rico wasn't a fan of it. I never realized how unhappy, soon as the neighbor told me that she saw Mayan's around my house. She recognized Rico, she knew him pretty well because he was always around." Alvarez let out a sigh. "He's the walking dead right now and probably too stupid to realize it."

"Is your whole crew compromised?"

"I can't be sure but there are guys that I can trust and I know who they are. I'm going to put a group together, take care of this but I can't do it alone."

"You don't have to," Jax replied without hesitation. "The Sons have your back on this Brother."

Happy watched as the two men shook on it, Jax's word was good. Always would be good, Teller had an integrity that a lot of people thought was something that made him weak but the opposite was true. He was strong because he stuck to his word, lived by values. His father had the same qualities but JT had lost his way, Jax was just finding his now.

"We do this tonight, I'll find where they are. Hard to hide on these streets and Rico's too cock sure to think that he has to." Alvarez rose to his feet. "I need to see to my kids now, by tomorrow morning they may be orphans."

"We need to do the same," Jax told him. "If you've got any doubts about your family being safe here, bring them to Charming. We'll find a place for them that's safe."

"I've got it covered, they'll be in Arizona by tonight. I just need a little time with them first."

27 27 27

The man who stepped out of the car was Hispanic and wearing a Mayan cut. A Mayan in a car was a strange sight, a Mayan on a Charming street was even stranger. Madeline watched as Phil rose to his feet.

Her first instinct was to call Happy but that wasn't exactly an option so she went with her second instinct. This was a fight or flight situation, if she were on her own she would stand and she would fight but she wasn't alone, she had Aiden to worry about. She needed to get her son out of this house to somewhere safe. Before she could begin to formulate a plan, a shot rang out.

The sound must have startled Aiden, he began to scream in the living room. She ran to him and scooped him up without even looking to see if the shooter was drawing closer to the house. She'd just jammed him into his car seat when she heard the pounding on the front door. "Maddy! Open the door."

The voice was Phil's and she was filled with immediate relief. She left Aiden long enough to open the door. "What happened?"

"I shot him, didn't kill him but he managed to get back in the car and take off. I think that you shouldn't be here, you should go... I don't know but if they were here..."

"I'll go to Tara and Jax's place, you come with me. More eyes on the house." Her mind raced with a million possibilities. "You follow me and why I get Aiden's stuff, call Jax tell him what happened and we should get out of here fast, I'm willing to bet someone called the Sheriff by now."


	28. Chapter 28

A/N: Thanks as always for all the reviews, follows and favorites. I can not possibly say it enough. I'm really honored that so many of you love Madeline and Happy the way that I do. Enough blabbing from me, on with the story!

Chapter TWENTY EIGHT

They'd been at his house, at his fucking house only feet from where his wife and son were and for that, they would die. Happy was off his bike and to the door of Jax and Tara's house before Opie or Jax had their helmets off.

"The fuck were you?" He demanded of Kozik as the man opened the door.

"I was falling asleep, left Phil there."

"If I'd wanted Phil there, I'd have asked him to watch my family."

"It wasn't his fault," Madeline came up behind Kozik in the doorway, "and please don't yell, I just got Aiden to take a nap."

"Move," he growled at Kozik and grabbed his wife.

"I'm okay, we're okay," Madeline whispered in his ear as she wrapped her arms around him.

Happy couldn't say anything, he had no words. "I figured that we could be safer here, Tara thought so too."

"You were right Girl." He released her, stepped in the house. He'd noticed the other cars so he wasn't surprised to see Gemma, Luann and Neeta in the living room. He was surprised to see two Spanish men he didn't recognize standing on opposite sides of the room.

"Nero's guys," Madeline slid her arm around Happy's waist.

He nodded, not trusting the men he didn't know even if they were Nero's. He barely trusted Nero, they didn't know enough about him. "Where's Aiden?"

"He's in Abel's room."

Happy needed to see his son. He took Madeline's hand and started down the hall. Sure enough his boy was fast asleep in the center of the bed with pillows around him to keep him from rolling off. "I'm not going to wake him."

Madeline shut the door softly behind them. "You can if you need to."

"Let him sleep," Happy turned to face her. "You good?"

"I'm good," she confirmed. "Sort of scared shitless but you're here so I'm good."

"One of the Mayan's flipped on Alvarez, trying for a take over. Figure he hit us to prove he's bad ass."

"Only proves that he's stupid."

"There was a fire, Alvarez lost his Old Lady. Got the kids out though."

"Jesus," Madeline moved forward and wrapped her arms around him. "What now?"

"Now we strike back, take them out. Alvarez is finding out where he is and we'll go in together," he ran his hands over her back. "No one is going to hurt you or Aiden."

"Together?" Madeline looked up at him in surprise. "How do you know that this isn't some trap?"

"He lost his Old Lady Mad, you didn't see his face. It's not a trap."

"Be careful, I can't lose you."

"I ain't going anywhere."

"I want another baby Hap," Madeline bit down on her bottom lip.

"Can't make one right here," he pointed out. "We'll wake up Aiden."

"I'm being serious," her heart sank a little, maybe he didn't want what she did so he was just going to joke it away. She needed to know, no matter how much it would hurt.

"Shit Girl, so am I. He's not going to sleep through me making you come."

"We can talk about it later," or not, Madeline thought as she leaned her head against his chest.

"We can start later," he rested his head against hers, "you sure you're ready to do all this again?"

"Only if you are, I don't want to force you into anything."

"Gonna piss me off if you keep saying shit like that," he told her. "No one forces me to do shit, not even you. Told you I wanted more, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did."

"I don't fucking lie to you Mad. Listen, this shit will pass. Other shit will happen, that's just how it is. Ain't never going to be a quiet ride for us."

"Really? I could have sworn you promised me a quiet ride. Look, I can deal with anything except losing you or Aiden, so fucking be careful."

"You've always had a way with words," he pressed his lips to her hair. "C'mon," he nudged her towards the couch. "I'm fucking tired Mad." Happy pulled off his cut, hung it neatly from a hook on the back of the door. He was fucking exhausted and tired down to his bones. "You eat anything since you got here?"

"Gemma made empanadas, they were good. I had two and they weren't small. Have you eaten?"

"Breakfast in some diner," Happy stripped down to just his tank top and jeans. "Shitty coffee but decent pancakes, wasn't really hungry though."

"I bet," Madeline grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch. "Go on, lay down."

"Ordering me around now?"

"Would I ever do that?" she smiled playfully at him. "Just suggesting is all." Happy laid down on the couch, stretched his legs out and felt relief on his knees immediately. Fuck, he needed a pain killer or at least some ice. "You okay?"

"Fine," he said gruffly.

"Let me go grab some ice," she leaned down and kissed him lightly. "I'll get you something for the pain too."

"Thanks Mad." Sometimes he wondered if she could read his mind, she seemed to always know what he needed. Sometimes she knew it before he did, there was a time when it would have bothered him but now he was glad for it, glad for her and glad for their son. Nothing was going to take that away from him ever again especially not a bunch of fucking pussy Mayan's who killed women and certainly not the aches and pains in his body. Fuck, getting old sucked.

28 28 28 28

Madeline shouldn't have been comfortable when she woke stretched across Happy, both of them half falling off of the couch. She looked over at him to see that he was still sleeping and didn't want to wake him. She settled her head back down against his chest and looked over to Abel's bed to check on Aiden.

The bed was empty. Panic flared inside of her, she jumped up. "The fuck?" Happy was awake in a second and on his feet. "Mad?"

"Aiden's not in here," she pointed at the bed.

"Saw Jax come in earlier and grab him, relax." Happy frowned, he'd never seen her quite like this before. "Probably getting him food or changed."

"Probably," she agreed. "Sorry that I woke you up, you should lay back down and get some more sleep."

"I'm up now," he felt better than he thought that he would. Whatever Tara had given Madeline had worked really good, he might need to get a prescription for it. "You still look tired, you should lay back down. I'll keep an eye on Aiden, he'll be fine."

Madeline shook her head. He knew that she wouldn't just go back to sleep when he was only hours from riding out. Hell, they could want to leave in the next ten minutes. "Come on, I'll find you something to eat. You must be starving."

"I'll take anything," he admitted, "for now. Tomorrow when we're home, I want you to make me steak. It'd be great if you didn't burn it but I'll eat it either way."

"I burned the steak one time, one single time a long time ago and never since," she pointed out. "Should burn it on purpose this time."

"I'd still eat it." Happy slid on his cut. "You going to make me steak tomorrow Mad?"

"I suppose I could do that," she moved over to him, stretched up to kiss his lips. "Might even make you dessert if you play your cards right."

"You're going to be dessert," he nipped down on her bottom lip. "Unless you'd rather bake something."

"I fucking hate to bake and you know it," she kissed him again. "Tomorrow you'll have all the steak and anything else you want."

"Anything else?" Happy grinned. "I might have a few ideas about that. So, anything right?"

"Not that," she told him sternly as her cheeks flushed red. "When are you going to stop asking when I just always say no?"

"You're gonna say yes," it was an old argument, a playful one that they had on a pretty regular basis but his face was serious. "And you're going to fucking love it."

"We'll agree to disagree on that," once more Madeline kissed him. "Come on, let's go get some food."

28 28 28

Happy ended up showering while Madeline made him something to eat. Aiden was playing with Thomas both boys as intent on the toys as the television in front of them. Gemma and Nero were watching them, so they were as safe as they could be.

Tara and Jax were in their bedroom, Opie was sitting in the back room with his kids and the rest of the guys were outside. Nero's guys would be out there too. All they needed to do was wait for Jax's prepay to ring with the whereabouts of Rico Santos and they'd be on there way. Avenge the deaths in Indian Hills and squash the coup that threatened to knock Alvarez off of the throne.

"Do you want another burger?"

"I want you to eat a fucking burger," he told her as he bit into several fries at once. She'd fussed over his food, even made the fries.

"I'm going to make myself one after I'm done. Now, do you want another one?"

"Yeah," he replied.

"I'll take one if you're offering," Opie spoke from the doorway, "unless I'm interrupting."

Happy motioned for the man to sit down. "You want a single or a double burger Op?"

"Double," he replied, "and cheese if you got it. Put cheese on yours too, you could use the calories."

"Are both of you going to play food police now? Look at my ass, I eat plenty!"

"Don't look at her ass," Happy warned Opie who simply grinned in response. "Where's your burger."

"Right here," she pointed to a normal size patty between the other two.

"Make it bigger," Happy told her.

Madeline sighed but did as he asked, if her eating put him at ease she'd eat even if felt like she was going to be sick because she knew every minute that passed was one closer to them having to leave.

"Op. Hap." Jax appeared in the doorway. "We're heading out in thirty. Hey, are those burgers?"

"I'll make you one," Madeline offered.

"He can have one of mine, I've always got to share with him."

"Never complain when I'm sharing with you," Jax grinned and Opie let out a laugh. A second later Happy chuckled which made Opie laugh harder. Madeline eyed them, wondered what the sharing story was and decided that she probably really didn't want to know after all if it involved the three of them.

Madeline served them there food and turned to make her plate. She was going to eat right there at the counter but Happy reached out and grabbed her arm. "Come over here."

She settled down on his lap, ever since his release he'd been more physically affectionate towards her in front of everyone. It had been unnerving at first but it hadn't taken long for her to get used to it. She loved feeling like he just couldn't keep his hands off of her.

"Alright, we're out of here in fifteen." Jax told them. "Kozik and Juice are staying here with some of Nero's guys," he paused, "Nero is going to ride with us." Madeline seemed to be the only one surprised by the announcement. Perhaps the partnership she'd heard about was going to happen, she sort of hoped it did.

"Thanks for the food Maddy, it was great," Opie wiped his mouth and rose to his feet. "It okay if I tell Kenny and Ellie to find you if they need anything?"

"I'll keep an eye on them, they'll be fine." Madeline assured him as she got up so that Happy could stand. "Don't worry."

"Thanks Maddy," Opie smiled down at her, he left the kitchen most likely to go see the kids.

"Let's get Aiden," Happy spoke softly, he ran his hand over her lower back. "You good?"

"What do you think?"

"Think that everything's gonna be fine and you need to stop worrying," he took her hand in his and squeezed. "Got it?"

"I got it," she promised.

For her this was the worst part, the anticipation of him leaving had her entire body on edge, every nerve ready to just explode or something. It was the part where she made damn sure never to show how she was really feeling, Happy didn't need to know that it was hard on her. He had much more important things to worry about.

She watched him with their son, the look on the young boys face was one of pure admiration and love. Aiden worshipped his father, no doubt was going to want to grow up and be just like him. One day he would be the one in the cut heading into danger, she just knew it and he'd have as strong a connection to Abel and Thomas as Jax and Opie did.

"Come on, let's go have a cigarette." Gemma came up beside her. "Though you really shouldn't be smoking."

"What are you talking about Gemma?"

"I'm talking about that little surprise you've got baking," she looked purposefully down at Madeline's stomach, "don't know how you thought that you could hide it."

"Hide what?" Tara questioned as she came up behind them.

"She's knocked up again," Gemma said with conviction, her tone still low enough not to carry to the guys.

"I am not knocked up again. Jesus Christ Gemma, get a new hobby besides stirring up shit," Madeline suggested as she walked away and over to where Happy was getting ready to put Aiden down. The baby went willingly, happily gurgled as he was covered with his blanket. "Hey."

"Was wondering if you were gonna bother coming saying goodbye," he grinned at her. "Is Gemma behaving herself?"

"She's Gemma, so that would be no."

"You want me to handle it?"

"No, I've got Gemma. You worry about handling your shit."

"I've got it covered Mad, quit the worrying. Once we go, I want you to have some wine and relax. I'll wake you up when I get back."

"Okay," she stretched up and kissed him. "Love you."

"Love you too." Happy ran his hand over her cheek and then turned to join his brothers going out the door. Madeline followed and found herself on the porch with Tara and Gemma as the men got on their bikes and rode off to the unknown.

Madeline was glad for the guys left behind, even Nero's guys that she didn't know made her feel safer. After all, she knew that they were devoted to Nero and he'd want Gemma and her family to be safe no matter what the cost.

"Alright," Gemma clapped her hands together, "let's get back inside. Got lots to do."

"Is that code for wine? I'd really like some wine."

"No wine for you, no cigarettes but I'll make you some tea, need to keep you hydrated for the tests."

"Tests? What the hell Gemma?"

"Seems like it'll take more than one to convince you," the older woman pointed out.

"I am not pregnant. Tara, tell her that she's being crazy."

"Actually, she's pretty good at guessing these things. Is there any chance that you could be and don't know. You didn't realize about Aiden right away."

"I am not... I am not pregnant. Now, I really need that glass of wine. It would probably make the guys more comfortable if we weren't standing outside like open targets." Madeline looked over to Kozik who nodded in agreement.

"Denial is ugly on you Madeline," Gemma chided, "fine be stubborn and suit yourself but soon we'll all know the truth. That's when I'll say I told you so."

"Not this time," Madeline informed her and was glad that they were headed back inside. She had the feeling that it was going to be one long ass fucking night.


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from SOA.

A/N: Wow, you guys still blow me away with the reviews, follows and favorites for this. I can't tell you how much they mean to me. I was really inspired after the last chapter and got this chapter done in record time so I decided that there's no point in waiting, so here it is. I really hope you enjoy it.

Chapter TWENTY NINE

"You sure this is it?" Jax glanced over to Alvarez as they sat on the road about a half mile down from a small building. The street was deserted, the building had no cars or bikes in front of it. In fact the whole place looked dusty, like it hadn't been touched in a long time.

"It's what they told me," Alvarez looked around, "it has to be."

Happy remained quiet, it had to be where they were or the distention in ranks of the Mayans was worse than what any of them suspected and that would mean the end of Alvarez and his reign.

"Hap, Tig go ahead and check in out. Keep it quiet, take care of anyone you find." Jax got off of his bike, looked at his men.

Happy nodded to Tig as they started towards the building. Everything inside of him shut down except for the mission, he was prepared to do whatever he had to do for the club. Tig moved off to one side and he went to the other.

All he could hear was the sound of his own heartbeat echoing in his ears with every step closer to the building, it had once been a small store but was now basically falling apart. Happy realized that there was a sliver of light coming from what must have been the basement, as he moved around the back of the building he saw the bikes that they had missed. There were four of them.

He liked those odds, especially if they needed to get any information out of the guys four was plenty.

"I told you Baby, it's fucking club shit. I can't just leave." Happy froze as he heard the sound of a man talking, dumb fuck was on the phone with his girl. "I'll try to get there before you pop the kid out. Get some drugs and chill." The call ended with the man calling his girl a few choice words.

Distracted by the call he stepped out the back door, lit a cigarette and exhaled loudly. Happy grinned and reached out to snap the man's neck, he grabbed the body before it could hit the ground and drug it around the side of the building. If they were lucky it would be a few minutes before anyone realized that he was gone.

"Carlos, where the fuck did you go?" Another voice called out and Happy realized that they were far from lucky. Shit, someone had been right behind this asshole.

He reached down, slid his knife out of the sheath as he listened to the second man's footsteps drawing closer. The minute he turned the corner Happy struck out, his blade sliced through the man's throat. Two down, how many more to go? It didn't matter to him.

Happy watched Tig approach from the opposite side of the house and saw the rest of his brothers along with Nero and Alvarez starting to come closer. His blood was racing from the two quick kills but he wanted more. Fuck, he hoped these were some heard headed fuckers who didn't want to give up what they knew so that he could make them.

29 29 29

Time moved slowly, slower than ever before, Madeline was sure that she was going to go insane before it was a decent time to go to bed. On the floor in front of her Aiden was sitting with Thomas, both intent on the pile of blocks in front of them. Aiden wasn't quite sure what to make of them but that didn't stop him from enjoying himself.

"So," Tara plopped down next to Madeline. "Is there any way that Gemma's right?"

"Oh for the love of God," Madeline shook her head, "no, there is no way that Gemma is right whatsoever."

"So, you'd take a test just to prove that?" Tara looked hopeful that she would. "I'm just saying, that's one way to know for sure and put aside anyone who says different."

"Sure," Madeline replied with a healthy dose of sarcasm, "let's send Kozik out to buy every test in the store."

"Oh there's no need to do that," Tara grinned at her, "I've got some in the bathroom."

"You stockpile pregnancy tests?"

"I don't stockpile them, I just believe in being prepared for all possible outcomes," Tara glanced towards the door to the living room where Gemma was sitting smoking. "And I wouldn't be too disappointed if I got pregnant again, I know it's crazy but I just think that another one would be nice."

Madeline had to agree. "I want another one too, I know that it's not right now though. I had my monthly visitor last week, so there's no way. Sorry to disappoint Gemma."

"Sounds like you're a little disappointed," Tara observed.

"No, it'll happen when it's right," Madeline smiled at the doctor. "I'm going to make some coffee for the guys. Would you like anything?"

"I think that I'm going to have another glass of wine, can never seem to get enough wine when Jax is on a run." Tara picked up the remote and turned the television on. "I usually put on a movie, down the better part of a bottle and try my level best to pass out but I never do because I'm listening for the phone."

"I can't focus on television, I clean sometimes or just..." she didn't want to admit it to Tara or anyone but sometimes she just sat in the living room and looked out the window. "Anything to kill the time."

"I'll drink to that," Tara held up her glass. "Would you mind getting me a refill?"

"No problem," Madeline grabbed the glass. "Gemma, you want a refill?"

"Oh yeah," the woman replied, "keep them coming."

Madeline caught sight of Kozik just off of the back porch, she tapped on the window and held up the coffee pot. He smiled and nodded, she'd have liked to tell him to come inside for a little while but knew that he wouldn't leave his post.

She poured drinks, washed up some dishes, made the coffee and set it out on two little trays to make it easier to carry to the guys. What she'd told Tara before was true, she did enjoy keeping herself busy when Happy was out on a run.

It was quiet in the house except for the television that Tara and Gemma were watching, Madeline couldn't wait to sit down and have a few glasses of wine for herself but she felt bad for the guys stuck outside.

She added cookies to the trays and carried one to the back door. Kozik spotted her immediately and opened it. "Thanks Maddy," he grinned at her. "Get back inside, make sure that you lock the door."

"I'm about to jump into a bottle of wine once I take the other tray out front. Everything quiet out there?"

"As quiet as can be, don't worry Maddy." He grinned and picked up one of the coffee cups. "Sleep tight."

"You don't sleep," she teased as she shut and locked the door behind her. She grabbed a couple of Red Bulls from the fridge because she knew that Juice prefered them to coffee and she needed him awake. Poor Juice, he'd been planning to leave the following day to go and find Lia. It didn't look like that was going to happen for him.

Madeline was a little bit glad about that, she had a bad feeling about why her friend had stayed away so long. At first she'd hoped that it was just a case of cold feet but now she had to wonder what darker reason there could be.

She tapped on the window in the front door and waited for Juice to come over, Madeline tapped on it again. What the hell was he doing that he couldn't come over to the door? "Shit." This wasn't good, wasn't good at all.

For a moment Madeline considered opening the front door but realized that if someone besides a friendly person was on the porch she might as well just straight out invite them in to commit mass murder or whatever it was they wanted to do. She left the tray on the foyer table, moved quickly back to the kitchen without saying anything to Tara or Gemma.

"Kozik," she knocked on the back window and waited. "Fuck." Madeline moved to turn off the kitchen light and looked out. There was no one to be seen, not Kozik and not any of Nero's guys.

29 29

There had been eight men in the basement, not including the ones Happy had killed outside, and only two of them were still breathing. Happy looked down at the tool roll he'd brought with him, selected a pair of needle nose pliers. "These aren't the ones I wanted but they'll do. Now," he gripped the end of the man's fingernail, "maybe you want to start telling me what I want to fucking know. Where's Santos? Where's Rico?"

The man let out an anguished cry. "Fuck you, ain't telling you shit."

Happy grinned, that had been exactly what he'd been hoping the man would say. Sometimes it was nice when it was a quick thing but tonight, on these assholes who had either gone to his house or sent someone, he wanted it to be hard.

"Jesus Christ," Jax took a pull off of his cigarette. "See that?" He addressed the only other Mayan still alive in the room. "He's just getting warmed up, by the time that he gets to you he's going to be on fire."

"Fire?" Happy looked over and his grin widened. "Fire sounds about right."

"WAIT!" The second man who had only been smacked around a little screamed the word, "I'll tell you whatever you want to know, please just stop!"

"Fucking pussy," Chibs shook his head, "ain't even touched a hair on your head."

"Talk," Happy turned his attention to the man, "and make it good motherfucker."

"Rico is with the Tran family right now, they're the ones who ordered the hits on the Sons and Alvarez's house to eliminate outside threats and send a message."

"Who the fuck are the Tran's?" Jax demanded, he nodded at Opie who immediately took out his phone to call Juice.

"That's all I know, just that Rico is with the Tran's now. Please, don't kill us. We've got families, kids."

"So do we," Jax nodded to Happy as he raised his gun.

Both men fired almost at once, the last two remaining members of the rebelling Mayan's were dead. Alvarez hadn't said a word or shown any reaction to anything that was going on in the room. "I know who the Tran's are, they've never shown an interest in anything we run. Basically they move high end cars and electronics," the Mayan President adjusted his cut, "let's go."

"Take a look around," Jax looked over at Tig who nodded, "then torch this place."

"Got it," Tig moved off, two of Nero's guys behind him.

"I know of the Tran's as well," Nero cleared his throat. "Like Alvarez said, our shit isn't their cup of tea. They've branched out a little, running a couple houses of girls now and an outcall service. Doesn't compare to Diosa of course."

"You can reach out to them?" Jax demanded.

"Be happy too," Nero took out his phone, dialed. "Yeh, it's Nero. I need a sit down," he listened for a moment, "no, that's not soon enough. Now? That's more like it," he took a small notebook out of his pocket, scribbled down an address. "Yeah, see you."

"Nice," Jax commented, he lit a cigarette. "What are we waiting for? Let's go."

29 29 29 29 29

Madeline slid her fingers over her cell phone and stepped back slowly from the door. Why did shit like this keep happening to her? She made her way to the living room where she found Gemma and Tara still in front of the television. "So, we might have a problem."

Tara reached for her wine glass and gulped down the rest of it. "Define problem," she requested.

"No one is on either porch, something happened in front first because Kozik was fine when I took him the coffee, now there's no one answering when I knock on the glass. I can't see anyone."

"Son of a bitch!" Gemma rose to her feet and moved over to her purse. The gun she drew out was no surprise to any of them. "I'll go check the kids."

"I should call Jax." Tara reached for her phone.

Madeline nearly told her not too, what if the call distracted them from whatever they were doing and someone got hurt? But what if they didn't call and something happened to them or the kids? "Fuck," she ran her hand over her face. Where the hell had she put her purse?

"No answer," Tara looked scared as she put the phone back down on the table.

"Alright, they're probably in the middle of it," Madeline told her. "We need to make sure all the doors and windows are locked, get the kids into the most easily defended room. Until they call back, we need to be smart about this."

"Right, smart," Tara rose to her feet. "I'll check upstairs and get my gun."

"Good idea," Madeline finally remembered where she put her purse and went into the kitchen for it. She was useless with a gun but that wouldn't stop her from trying, she also had the knife Happy had given her which she was more comfortable with.

She kept the knife in her hand as she moved over to make sure that the door was locked. That was when she saw Kozik, he seemed to have crawled back to the porch. He was crumpled over the steps and she could see blood on his shirt. "Shit. Shit. Tara!"

The doctor came running. "What? What happened?"

"Look, Kozik. He's hurt. We need to get him inside."

"It could be a trap."

"Well, I know but we still need to get him in here unless you want him to bleed out on your fucking stairs." Madeline desperately tried to formulate a plan, something that hopefully ended without Kozik dead or them all killed or kidnapped. Shit, she couldn't think at all. "Damn it." There was no way that she was just going to leave him out there to bleed to death.

"I'll call Jax again," Tara grabbed the kitchen phone and dialed the number desperately, "he'll know what to do." Jax didn't answer, Madeline wasn't surprised. He would have called back if he'd seen the missed call.

"Okay, the backyard has those flood lights right?"

"Right, Jax said to keep them off so the guys wouldn't be so obvious."

"We're going to turn them on, if anyone's hiding we'll see them. Get Gemma to lock herself in the room with the kids and then I'll go out, you cover me with your gun. I'll grab him, drag him back in."

"If he's passed out he'll be dead weight," Tara pointed out.

"I can do it," Madeline insisted. She could do it because she had to do it, there was no other way and no one to help them. They had to help themselves. "Go tell Gemma," she ordered because another minute to gather her courage would go a long way.

"Alright, ready," Tara had a look of determination on her face as she came back into the kitchen. "Gemma's moved everyone to our bedroom, the doors locked and there's only the one window to worry about."

"Good, alright. Turn on the lights."

Everything that happened after that was a blur to Madeline, she opened the door and rushed out when they hadn't seen anyone lurking in the shadows. "Come on Kozik, help me out," she grabbed his shoulders, tugged and moved him a few inches. He was heavier than she'd imagined.

"Maddy, hurry up," Tara hissed from behind her, "someone's coming!"

Madeline didn't let herself look up, she just tightened her grip on Kozik and pulled as hard as she could manage. Apparently, fear was a great motivator because she managed to get him inside. Tara slammed the door and the mysterious visitor remained just out of the range of the spot lights.

"Shit," the doctor swore. "Go and get my bag Maddy, it's in my office. Go and get it now."

Madeline took off at a run, the person lingering in the yard forgotten as she tried not to just start crying. Kozik was bad, Tara's face had told her that. Jax still hadn't called back and where was everyone else. She found the bag, returned to the kitchen. "What do I do?"

"Start cutting his clothes off so I can get to the wound."

"We've got to take his cut off first," she pointed out even as she searched for scissors. "Don't look at me like that, it's his cut!" Madeline knelt down next to Kozik. "Koz, just help me out here, try not to be total dead weight. Are you helping or what?" she demanded of Tara who was just watching her.

"We're wasting time."

"You wanna tell him you hacked off his cut with kitchen shears? I don't. Hell, I wouldn't want to be explaining it to Jax and Happy and everyone frigging else either. We're wasting more time with you not helping."

Finally between the two of them they managed to get the cut off and then his shirt. "Alright, I can see the wound. It's got an entrance and an exit, I don't like the placement. I don't like it at all."

"Can you fix it?"

"We're most certainly going to find that out right now. Give me the suture kit from my bag, quick."

Tara was in complete doctor mode, Madeline just went along for the ride. Maybe she was crazy but she swore that Kozik's color was returning. "Come on Kozik, wake up."

"Why hasn't anyone tried to get in?" Tara asked as she sat down hard on the floor. "Why is that guy just standing out there, staring in?"

"I've got no clue, honestly I think that I'd like it better if they did something." Madeline admitted. She drew her phone out of her pocket, ignored the stained blood on her hands. "I'm calling Hap."

"I'll try Jax again."

They sat on the blood stained floor and dialed their men, neither answered and the lack of communication was starting to freak Madeline out. Even if Happy didn't answer his phone, Tara had now called Jax three times with no response.

What if something was wrong on their end as well? What if the help that she was hoping for never came because there was no one left? What if she was already a widow? Madeline shut her eyes and put her head back against the cabinets. "You should go and check on the kids and Gemma," she suggested to Tara. "I'll start cleaning up in here."

29 29 29

Happy didn't like the meeting with the Tran's, the location had set off a warning bell because it was smack dab in the middle of their territory. Sure, the candy colored cars and fashionably dressed guys lining the street in front were different from the rough and tumble biker types he was used to but they had serious hardware.

It made his fingers itchy, he'd rather be walking in with his gun out and save himself the few seconds it would take to draw it out. He looked over to Jax, the president looked just as stiff as he felt. In fact, they all were on edge even Nero. Maybe especially Nero, Happy eyed Gemma's new man and wondered about his intentions, it wasn't the first time he'd questioned them. There was something just off about the whole situation or maybe he just found seeing Gemma with someone other than Clay to be weird, either way he was keeping his eye out.

"Mr. Tran will see you now," an efficient looking blonde woman came out of what had to be the back office. "He also wished for me to tell you that he'll see three of you, only three."

Jax took the news in stride. "Whatever the boss wants Darling," he flashed her one of his lady killing smiles. "Op. Hap. With me."

"Very good," the woman continued to smile, "please follow me."

That was the second strike against this meeting as far as Happy was concerned but he kept his feeling to himself, hoped that Jax had picked up on the vibe. He was pretty sure that Opie had, the large man had never looked more like a warrior than that moment.

The back office was actually just a large room, there was a desk in one corner and a man sitting behind it. "Phones on that table please," the blonde told them, "Mr. Tran does not like electronic devices interfering with business conversations."

Happy put his phone down after Jax did, that was strike three. This situation was fucked up, beyond fucked up, and he wasn't sure exactly how they were going to get out of it. He turned his attention to the old man at the desk who had yet to even acknowledge their presence. If he didn't know better he'd say the old fuck was dead.

The blonde walked out of the room, the door shut behind her and then it was silent. The silence hung heavily in the air for a moment, then the old man started to laugh. It was a loud, rumbling laugh that made him have to stop and cough, he probably didn't need the cigarette he lit after either but he took a greedy drag. "The door."

"Excuse me?" Jax questioned.

The old man muttered something in a language that they didn't understand. He rose slowly to his feet, crossed to the other side of the door and slid back a panel. "The door!" He repeated before starting the return journey to his chair.

"What the fuck?" Opie muttered as he eyed the dark room on the other side.

A light flipped on, footsteps could be heard approaching the door and all three men pulled out their weapons as the sound got closer and closer. "It would be a very bad first impression if one of you were to shoot me." The man who stepped through the door couldn't have been older than thirty five and was dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt. "Come with me, we will have more privacy in here. I assure you, this is not an ambush."

Happy looked over at Jax, he could practically see the gears in the blonde man's head turning. "My men will keep their guns if that's all the same to you."

"In your situation, I would do the same," the man had never stopped smiling.

Happy was on high alert when he started into the other room ahead of Jax. This was an actual office, a nice one and judging by the heavy metal door it also doubled as a panic room. Who the fuck were these guys and why hadn't they known anything about them? There were more questions than answers, as pleasant as the man seemed to be it was clearly obvious that there was something else beneath the surface.

"We won't waste your time," Jax spoke, "and this isn't exactly a social call."

"I didn't imagine that it was. Tell me, what's on your mind Mr. Teller?"

"You know my name and I don't know yours, doesn't seem fair."

"Call me Anthony, Mr. Tran is my father's name." The man smiled again. "Please sit or stand, which ever you prefer. I think that it's best we just cut right to the chase. I have been advised of the events which transpired, I can understand that you would be upset over them."

"Upset?" Jax let out a low chuckle. "Women were killed, innocent women and brothers; upset isn't even in the right zip code."

"I had no previous knowledge of what Rico Santos intended to do," the man pulled himself up to his full height, "when I was made aware, I took an immediate interest. It would seem that my younger brother decided to act on his own accord. I assure you, he'll be dealt with as well."

"And that's supposed to be enough?"

"Of course not," Anthony shook his head, "I will of course turn Rico Santos over to you, he has already given up a second location where his men are gathered, that is yours as well. As far as my brother goes, well I've got something a little more permanent than death in mind."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that my brother is going to learn what life would be like if none of this was his, we call it exile."

"What if he comes back after you?" Happy questioned.

The man smiled, almost as if he would enjoy that happening. "If my brother were to attempt to come back from exile and make a move against the family he would forfeit his life. Even if he were successful, I have a very detailed plan that will be set in motion that he will not survive."

"Sounds like you've got it all worked out," Jax observed, "just one thing, what if Santos isn't enough? What if we want your brother?"

"I foresaw that possibility, I took steps," Anthony turned his computer monitor around. "Right now, there are six men surrounding your home Mr. Teller. The men that you had stationed there have been incapacitated, as humanely as possible except for a few who fought back. If you are not agreeable to walking out of here with Mr. Santos and the location of his friends than I will give an order and my men will over run your home."

Happy's body went rigid because he could see Madeline moving around inside the house. What the fuck was she doing? Was she pacing? Anger burned through his blood, he clenched his fists and waited for Jax to give his order. He'd kill that son of a bitch where he stood and never even blink his eye. "You're threatening women and children?"

"I threaten whoever seems most effective, I would much prefer for my men to just go home tonight but the choice is yours," Anthony settled down in the desk chair. "Oh, I might not have mentioned that if I don't check in every ten minutes that they go in, I believe in covering my bases."

It was the proverbial rock and hard place, he could be bluffing or he could not be. Either way Happy realized the odds of him being able to solve this with good old fashioned violence were beyond slim.

"We'll take Santos and the location, leave your brother to you." Jax gritted his teeth.

"A wise decision Mr. Teller, I've heard that you were a wise man and I am not disappointed. Now that we've got this unpleasant business out of the way, I'd like to meet again at a less emotional time to discuss a possible business venture."

"Sure, now call off your guys." Jax nodded towards the monitor. Anthony nodded and picked up the phone on his desk. He carried on a short conversation in a language that Happy didn't recognize.

"It is done," Anthony assured them. "My girl will give you my card and the location, please call me to set up that meeting. Santos will be in a black van outside, the van can not be traced, do with him what you will."

29 29 29

Madeline shifted on the uncomfortable kitchen floor. She'd tried to move Kozik but it was basically impossible so she'd cleaned the floor around him and tried to make him comfortable. "Wake up Blondie, I'm bored," she risked poking at his shoulder. "You're not supposed to be so fucking quiet, you never shut up."

He didn't rise to her bait, he was most certainly still unconscious from the pain or maybe it was a concussion and she should be trying harder to wake him up. She just didn't know what to do.

Her gun was on the floor next to her, she really hoped she wouldn't need it but the men standing outside were freaking her out. She glanced out of the window, surprised when she didn't see anyone. Could that be it? Was it over?


	30. Chapter 30

A/N: Thank you for all your reviews, faves and follows. You already know how giddy it makes me. Special thanks go to R3-1 M4y3r for taking a look at this when I was having my pre-post meltdown. If you haven't checked out her stories you really should, she's great.

CHAPTER THIRTY

They were two blocks away from Jax's house when a Sheriff's car pulled up behind them and turned on the light. There was no choice but to pull over and watch Roosevelt himself get out of the car. He walked over to Jax, eyes shielded by dark sunglasses. "Teller."

"Roosevelt." Jax nodded curtly at the man. "We got tail lights out or something?"

"Tonight, I got a lot of strange calls from your neighborhood. Unconscious men in back yards, men with guns just standing around so I decided to knock on your door to make sure everything was alright," the Sheriff looked over at Happy, "his wife answered the door and pretty much told me to piss off."

Opie let out a loud burst of laughter. "She's never going to forgive you for that speeding ticket Roosevelt. Twenty seven in a twenty five and two points on her license? You are forever on her shit list."

"Be that as it may, I couldn't help but notice that your yard is looking pretty rough, lots of foot prints. There isn't anything that I should know, is there?"

"Op's right about Hap's Old Lady," Jax looked over at Happy, grinned. "She can hold a grudge. That's about it."

The Sheriff looked like a man who knew he was being lied to but had no way to prove it. "Alright, you fellas ride safe. Oh, you can bail out your unconscious friends just as soon as St. Thomas is done with them."

"Thanks, we'll do that."

The second the Sheriff turned towards his car they all pulled back onto the road. Even though it was only two blocks Happy had to tell himself not to speed. Finally, he was in front of the house and off of the bike.

"Jesus Christ," Jax looked around, "looks like there was one hell of a fight. Where the fuck is everyone?"

The only people Happy cared about knowing were safe was his wife and son. He headed for the house, he knocked hard on the front door. Fuck, he should have waited for Jax and his keys. One hand tightened on the butt of his gun, he didn't know what he would find inside or why there was no one outside.

If Roosevelt hadn't said he'd just spoken to Madeline, he would be a mad man imagining that the worst had happened to her. He pounded on the door again.

"Jesus Hap, learn patience," Gemma said dryly as she opened the door.

"Where are they?"

"Your wife is in the kitchen, your son is still asleep upstairs. They're fine Hap."

He looked towards the bedroom and towards the kitchen. He wasn't going to wake Aiden, or any of the other kids up, so he went looking for Madeline. He found her in the kitchen, sitting on the floor next to Kozik.

Her face lit up at the sight of him, she was on her feet and on him in record time. "You came home," she pressed her face against his neck. "I'm so glad that you're back, I'm going to just go to a room and pass out now because..." she let out a shaky laugh, "it's been a long night."

"I can see that," he looked over at Kozik, "he gonna make it?"

"He will, thanks to Tara." Madeline kept her arms around Happy, she'd stay that way just as long as she could.

Happy could hear the sound of other reunions going on in the living room. They'd come away whole from this, even if they had men in the hospital it was better than the alternative. "Tell me everything that happened."

"Okay," Madeline took a deep breath and just let everything that had happen rush in a jumbled fashion. Yet Happy seemed to be able to follow it because he began to frown when she mentioned Kozik crawling up on the porch. "So, we turned on all the lights and Tara covered me so I could pull him inside," she let the words rush out and just kept plowing through the story, "Tara fixed him up and then I sat with him while Gemma and Tara got some sleep. The Sheriff came by a while later, I told him that we didn't require any assistance."

"Heard about that," he gripped her hips. "Let me get this straight, you went outside after I told you not too."

"Kozik was hurt! He would have bled out. I couldn't just leave him out there, you wouldn't have."

"You're supposed to be smarter than me. Someone could have grabbed you! You could have been the one on the porch fucking bleeding out. Who would have helped you?" His grip on her hips tightened. "Who?"

"I made sure that no one was out there," she told him. "I just couldn't leave him there Hap. Don't be pissed."

"I'm fucking furious," he told her but his expression was made of stone, "I get why you did it but it was stupid, stupid and reckless and you should know better. You think Kozik would have wanted you getting hurt trying to save him?" He didn't wait for her to respond. "The next time I tell you to stay inside somewhere, it means stay inside. I don't give a fuck who is bleeding out on the porch. Got it?"

"I got it."

"Don't look like I just kicked your puppy, I need to know that you're being smart and safe when shit happens," his voice was rough, his anger still too close to the surface for him to be tender with her.

"I'm sorry," Madeline said softly. "Hap?"

"Yeah?"

"You're squeezing too hard," she kept her voice low.

"Fuck," he released his grip. "Why'd you wait to say anything? God damn it Mad," he ran a hand over his bald head, stepped back from her. "Go get some sleep." Here they were again, him putting hands on her, marking her skin and not even realizing it.

"Are we going to be able to go home soon?"

"Yeah," he replied, "should be within the hour."

"Then I'll wait to sleep until we get home, got to stop at the grocery store too. I need to get some steak, unless my Old Man is too pissed off at me to still want me to make him dinner."

"Gonna be pissed if you burn the steak," he held out his hand to her and she came to him. "You got to tell me," he spoke low enough for only her to hear, "if I'm hurting you, you have to say it."

"I did, once it got too tight. Relax, I think that we've established that you can't break me. Don't worry, I won't forget about dessert either, I have something special in mind." Madeline stretched up to kiss his lips. "I'm going to go check on Aiden, he should be getting up soon."

"Sit back down, rest." It was clearly an order. "I'll get the kid."

Madeline sat back down on the floor next to Kozik, leaned her head back against the cabinet and shut her eyes. Was it possible for her to sleep sitting up? She was sure that she was about to find out. The restless energy that had been rushing through her since Happy left was completely gone, he was home and she could let go of everything. He'd take care of her, he always did.

30 30

"I know that everyone wants to get home," Jax looked around at the men gathered around him in his basement, it wasn't the chapel that they were used to but it would do, "so I'll make this quick, this Tran guy is going to be a problem. I need to know everything there is to know about him yesterday. Chibs, get Juice on it when you pick him up from the hospital."

"Aye," the man nodded. "I'll take the van, bring all of the lads home. Find out just how they all got knocked out."

"I'll call Whiskey, let him know what happened here tonight. Let him know they should be safe. Hap, call Quinn. I want the Nomads here as soon as they can be, no one lets their guard down."

Happy nodded grimly, personally he wanted to get his hands on every single person that had come to the house and whoever had ordered them there. He didn't like the deal they'd made but there had been no choice. "They should be able to be here by tomorrow night."

"Good. Everyone keep their phones on, stay close. Now get the hell out of my house, all of you."

30 30

Madeline yawned widely as she pulled her car into the driveway, Happy pulled up beside her with a too familiar scowl on his face. "Oh Lord," she sighed to herself, "here we go." For someone who lived such a dangerous life, he really had some issues with the way that she drove.

He got off of the bike and began to take Aiden out of his seat. "You could have said you were tired enough to damn near fall asleep at the wheel, I'd have left my bike at the house," he hefted the car seat out of the back and slammed the door.

"I did not almost fall asleep, I'm not stupid." But she was tired, really tired, and when she got tired she got snappy, he got prickly when she got snappy. It would seem that the long night was no where near over. "I don't want to fight."

"I ain't fighting with you," he barely hid his grin as he took his keys out of his pocket. He loved when Madeline got cranky, it was so far outside of the way she normally acted that it actually got him hot, "you're the one getting an attitude."

"I do not have an attitude!" Madeline glared at him.

"Could have fooled me," Happy opened the front door and turned off the alarm.

"I'll take him," her tone was frosty. She reached her hand out to him for the seat, raised an eyebrow when he didn't hand him over.

"Take your ass to bed, I've got him."

"I can do it," she informed him, "I'm used to being tired."

"Take your ass to bed, I've got him." Happy repeated. He set the carrier down and began to remove the straps holding his son who was up and ready for breakfast. "You listening?"

"Kind of hard not to hear you," she stated, "and I don't need to be ordered to bed. I am not a child."

"I know you're not a child," he smiled at her, "you're dead on your feet Mad, go and get some sleep. I'll get the warrior his breakfast, entertain him a while maybe take him out back, he always loves that."

"I..."

"You're too tired to properly get bitchy because you're tired," he pointed out and risked her wrath, "so go to bed."

"I do not get bitchy because I'm tired," she glared at him, "I don't know why you always say that, asshole."

Happy chuckled. "I must be crazy Mad, don't know why I'd say you get bitchy." He lifted Aiden in the air, the boy screamed with delight. "We'll be fine."

"I forgot that we needed to go to the store for the steak."

"I'll go, take Little Man with me. He is a serious chick magnet, I've got to beat the bitches off with a stick." He settled Aiden on his hip, the boy eager to trace the designs of his father's ink. It was just too fun to tease her sometimes, to know that she knew what he was doing.

"Well, better not forget your stick then. Do I need to make you a list?"

"You're making steak so we need... steak."

"Among other things, I'll make a list. It'll take me two minutes." She always kept a note pad in the foyer table, she grabbed it and wrote out the items quickly. "Here, this should do it."

Happy took the paper. "Why the hell do you want whip cream?"

"If I have to explain that you should probably cross off the chocolate or caramel sauce." Madeline leaned in, kissed him and then Aiden. "I am going to go to sleep. Set the alarm?"

"Nah, I'm gonna leave the front door wide open with a sign that says take my wife."

"Asshole," Madeline giggled. "Just for that, I'm going to put my pajamas on."

"Make sure that you don't like them," Happy smirked as an idea crossed his mind. He'd told her that they'd try to make a kid today, that would be much easier if Aiden went to visit Uncle Opie for a while. He'd never thought that he'd be so easy to trust someone with his kid but Opie was great with Aiden. He'd drop him off, pick up the stuff for dinner and come home to knock up his wife. "Go to bed Mad, you're going to need the rest."

"Be safe," she kissed both of them again. "I love you guys."

30 30 30

Happy was tossing the grocery bag into the back seat of Madeline's car when his phone rang. "Fucking hell," he growled and reached in his pocket. "Yeah."

"Hey Brother, it's me." Chibs voice was unmistakable. "Can you swing past the hospital? Something you need to see."

"Alright," Happy sighed. He'd run to the hospital, see whatever it was and be home in an hour. "Be there in five."

"Wait," he called out, "is the lass with you?"

"She's home, sleeping. Why?"

"She should see this too," Chibs replied cryptically.

"Give me twenty," he snapped the phone shut and got in the car. They'd swap the cage for his bike, make even better time to the hospital. Hopefully Madeline had gotten enough sleep to stay up for the ride. Whatever they needed to see better be fucking worth him going to the house and waking her up. Shit, she needed more sleep and some time to let her mind and body catch up to one another. He nearly picked up the phone and called Chibs back to say they weren't coming but his loyalty to the club stopped him.

Madeline was very much asleep when he finally got home and very much naked, as usual she'd kicked most of the covers off but her favorite brown blanket was clutched between her hands. "Not a security blanket, my ass."

She mumbled something in her sleep, rolled over and gave him a great view of her bare breasts. Again he was tempted to tell Chibs to piss off, he wanted nothing more than to crawl onto the bed with her, wake her up slowly and slide inside her. "Fuck," the last thing he needed was his dick hard. "Mad."

She grunted and buried her face in the pillows. "No." Her voice was muffled and she sounded pissed. "No. I just fell asleep."

"I'm sorry, we got to get down to the hospital. Something's going on, I'm not sure what but they want you there."

"Is someone hurt? Wait, where's Aiden?"

"He's with his favorite babysitter, Uncle Op is going to use the baby chick magnet thing and try to get a date. I have plans for us, this is just going to push 'em back a little bit."

"I'll get dressed so that we can get it over with. Did you get to the store?"

"I did, got the whipped cream, caramel and chocolate sauce plus some sprinkles."

"Sprinkles?"

"You'll see," he promised as he leaned in to kiss her. "Don't wear a bra."

30 30 30

Madeline kept close to Happy's side as they entered the hospital. The elevator took them to the third floor and she was surprised to see nearly the entire club in the hall. Jax spotted them and moved forward. "Took you long enough."

Happy slid his arm around Madeline's shoulders. They were a little later than expected because when she didn't wear a bra underneath her tank top he'd gotten a little bit too hands on. They'd ended up frantic on the bathroom counter. "We're here now."

"Madeline, I need to ask you about Lia."

"About Lia?" She frowned, what was the sudden interest in the woman who apparently had cut all ties to Charming. "I don't know where she is if Juice is asking for her, wish I did because I'd kick her ass for taking off without a word."

"Looks like you'll get your chance for that."

"Wait, what? My chance to kick her ass? Wait, she's here."

"She was in Juice's room when Chibs got here, hasn't said much of anything to anyone so we were hoping you'd go in and talk to her."

"I really don't... understand," Madeline looked down the hall to where Chibs and Tig were standing on either side of a door. Where the hell had Lia gone and why was she back now? The timing was a little coincidental, how did she even know that Juice was in the hospital?

"Neither do we Darling," Jax gave her a small smile. "That's why I need you to go in there and talk to her. Find out what you can because something is just off about it."

"Something's been off since she took off without a word," Madeline observed. Sure, she'd been a little distracted by things like her pregnancy and Happy being locked up but she'd never thought that she'd neglected her friendship enough for Lia not to tell her what was going on. "Is Juice awake?"

"Yeah," Jax let out a sigh, "he's over the fucking moon that she's back."

"Let me go in alone," Madeline told them, "if she's spooked about something you guys aren't going to make it better." She looked over at her husband with a smile. "You already scare the shit out of her Hap."

The corners of his lips twitched, it wasn't news to him that the woman was scared of him and he really didn't give a shit. He didn't have anything against her, she was Madeline's friend and that was great because he knew that she needed people outside of the club but whatever respect he'd had for her was gone the minute he found out that she left. It was a cowardly move, if she had a reason to leave than she should have just straight out said the shit.

"We'll wait out here," Jax told her, "but if anything feels off..."

"She's a freaking art teacher Jax, what's she going to do to me?" Madeline smiled. Paranoia went hand in hand with being a Son apparently, always seeing a monster lurking in the shadows when it was really a little kitten. "I'll be fine."

Madeline was sure that she would be but she had some reservations about facing off with her friend. In many ways she'd always thought that Lia had taken off because things were getting too intense with Juice and that the lifestyle of the club was too much for her to take.

She nodded to Chibs and Tig and knocked lightly on the door before pushing it open without waiting for a response.

"Maddy," Lia rose to her feet and Juice looked over. The change in the other woman was obvious, she'd lost weight and was wearing clothes that were totally not her style. She'd always favored flowing dresses or jeans but she was no wearing a pair of black pants, a red blouse and there was a black jacket draped over the back of the chair that she'd been sitting on.

"Hello Stranger." Madeline studied her friend, there was something very different about her and it wasn't just the new style of clothes or sleek hair cut.

"If you're here to start with Lia, you can leave Maddy." Juice opened his eyes. "She's back and that's that."

"Juice, I'm not here to start with anyone but come on, you don't expect me to have any questions?" Madeline was surprised that he'd told her she could leave, they'd always been friends.

"Right now, no I don't expect you to have any questions," he told her, "I think that you should go Madeline."

"Excuse me?" Madeline could hardly believe her ears. "You're kicking me out?"

"I'm in the fucking hospital," Juice's voice rose to a shout, "and we've got more important shit to worry about right now than your questions."

The door popped open. "Who the fuck are you screaming at?" Happy didn't shout, he didn't even raise his voice.

"Get your Old Lady out of here Brother," Juice met Happy's stare without blinking.

Happy's head tilted slightly to the side, he couldn't believe that Juice had not only yelled at Madeline but wasn't backing down from him. He'd always known that the kid had balls underneath the goofy exterior but he'd never expected him to use them like this.

"C'mon Mad," Happy reached out and took her hand. "We'll be at home," he told Jax as they left the room. "Got better shit to do with you than listen to girl talk."

Madeline walked with him, she'd realized that Juice had not so subtly pointed out her place in the club. The guys were brothers, there was next to nothing that they wouldn't do for one another. She was just an Old Lady.


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Sons of Anarchy.

A/N: I'm sure you're sick of hearing me say this but as always thank you all for the reviews, favorites and follows. They still make my day each and every time I get a notification. I'm really glad that you're all loving Madeline and Happy's journey as much as I am. Enough of my yapping, enjoy the chapter!

Chapter Thirty One

Madeline hadn't said anything when they left the hospital, instead she just stewed in her anger and annoyance. Pulling the brother card was a bitch move on Juice's part and she'd thought that they were friends. Hell, she'd been the one to introduce him to Lia and he wanted to act like that didn't even matter?

"Hey," Happy grabbed her arm as she started for the front door, "what's the hurry?"

"I'm assuming you want your steak dinner still, right?" she instantly regretted that she sounded snappy. "Shit Hap, I'm sorry. I just..."

"You're fine," he told her, it was rare to see her angry. He found it attractive to say the least. "How about I help you make dinner?"

"You help me in the kitchen? Without me threatening you?"

"Maybe I just don't want my steaks burned."

"Christ, I was so nervous that night. I'm surprised I didn't pass out."

"Thought you were gonna as much as you were talking," he grinned as she opened the front door.

"I just said that I was nervous, didn't I?" Madeline tossed her keys on the table near the door. "You weren't exactly warm and cuddly back then, come to think of it you're not really warm and cuddly now either."

"If you wanted warm and cuddly you should have gotten a dog."

"There's a thought," she swallowed back a little of her anger, she wasn't mad at him to begin with, "I might be cranky today and for that I'm sorry. I just... I thought that Juice was my friend. I thought that Lia was too, why wouldn't they just talk to me?"

"I don't know Mad," the truth was he was more than a little pissed at the way Juice had essentially ordered him to get her out of the room. From anyone else it wouldn't have bothered him because it wouldn't have really bothered her. The expression on her face when he'd barked the words at her had been like she'd been smacked. Once the idiot got out of the hospital they'd need to have a talk.

"I guess I forget sometimes that I'm just your Old Lady to these guys, not really a friend or family like I think of them."

"Hey," Happy reached out and grabbed her chin, his grip was probably too rough but he held on anyway, "you are fucking family to them. They'd all die for you Mad." He saw it in her eyes that she wasn't convinced. God damn Juice. "Shit Girl, I worried every day I was locked up that one of them was going to steal you away."

"No you didn't."

"Yeah," he admitted, almost painfully. "I did." Especially when he thought about the prison clause that some of the Old Ladies liked to invoke, free fucks while their man was going to do time because they had needs too and not just only the need to repay their man for leaving them alone.

"I would have never..." she trailed off as he leaned in and kissed her, "quit trying to distract me I'm being serious. I would never ever have used the prison clause. I couldn't have slept with someone else, I don't want anyone else."

"Oh yeah?" He took a step closer to her. "You ready to show me?"

"I thought you wanted to make dinner."

"I changed my mind, going to start with dessert," Happy grinned, "I'll grab the stuff from the store."

"Yeah, about that... what are we going to do with sprinkles exactly?"

"I really hope that you figure it out, thought that you were smart." He smacked her on the ass before moving towards the kitchen. "Get your ass upstairs Girl."

31 31 31

Juice signed the discharge papers and looked over to where Lia was sitting next to the window. "Looks like I'm all set. I'm guessing that you don't want to go to the clubhouse."

"Can we go to your house?" Lia removed her jacket from the back of the chair and slid it on. "I'm really not up for a lot of people right now. We need to talk more, there's more that I have to tell you."

"We've got time. It's not like you're going anywhere again, right."

"No, I don't want to go anywhere again." She told him, "I'm here unless you don't want me to be once I tell you all that I need to say."

"You drive here?" he questioned, she nodded, "good, let's go."

"What about your brothers?" She asked.

"I'll tell them I'm going home, shit after what I've been through I deserve to sleep in my own bed. Come on, we're getting out of here right now." He got off of the bed, pulled on his cut and held out his hand to her.

31 31 31

Happy swore as his phone began to ring. "Jesus Christ," he looked over at Madeline as the sprinkle container in her hand fell. He had sprinkles in places sprinkles should never be, so much for his brilliant idea.

"Shit," Madeline began to try and gather up the sprinkles but considering that she was pretty much covered in whip cream and caramel sauce all she really managed to do was make a bigger mess on the already nearly destroyed bed.

"What?" Happy snapped into the phone as he picked it up.

Madeline immediately recognized the look on his face. He had to leave. If she'd ever bothered to keep track of how many of these calls he'd received, she could prove what she suspected; the odds of him getting a call increased exponentially when they were naked or near naked. "You have to go," she said on a sigh, "and I've got laundry to do."

"Yeah, I got to go," he threw the phone down onto the bedside table. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I know the drill," she looked down at the sheets and herself with a sigh, "call me if you can?"

Happy nodded and slipped out of the bed. He'd need a shower first and it needed to be quick so he didn't even ask Madeline to join him though the thought did cross his mind. He kept the thought with him through the shower and then locked them down.

Madeline had the bed stripped and was pulling clean sheets out of the closet when he emerged from the bathroom. She'd thrown on a ratty robe which he thought was a shame but knew that she wouldn't want to lounge around with sticky skin.

Happy moved over to her, pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Lock the doors."

"I'm going to go get Aiden when I'm done here," she told him, "maybe actually cook that steak dinner." If there was anything she learned since being with Happy it was that the unexpected happened, shit came up and there would never be a day where he'd let a call from the club go unanswered and honestly, she was fine with that.

"Be careful," he told her, "and the alarm is on when you're back here, got it?"

"Got it."

31 31 31

"Got a call from Anthony Tran," Jax told Happy as he shut the doors to the Chapel. "He wants a meeting in two hours, just the three of us like the last time."

"I don't like that Jackie Boy," Chibs spoke up with a frown, "don't know how many men he's going to have in there."

"He's right," Happy focused on the situation, "could be a trap." Or it could be Anthony Tran wanting to show how powerful he was. "Need to get him to come to us, on our territory."

"Bluebird?" Opie suggested, "it's remote enough. We can put some guys where no one will see them, keep an eye out for any back up Tran has."

"Sounds solid," Jax nodded, "I'll make the call."

"Where's Juice?" Happy glanced around the Chapel.

"He went home," Tig said with a sneer, "took his magically reappeared girl with him, said he needed the rest."

"We're going to deal with that," Jax's jaw was set in a hard line, "once we finish the meet with Tran, I think it's time that girl answers some questions. I'm finding it really hard to see her showing back up right now as coincidence. What did we get when we ran her?"

"Nothing," Bobby spoke up, "at least that's what Juice said, she had a bunch of traffic and parking tickets but she paid them, worked off the points on her license."

"Kozik, does Wolf in Tacoma still owe you any favors?"

"Fucker couldn't shoot his way out of a wet paper bag, so yeah he owes me," the blonde man didn't need to be told why Jax was asking. He wasted no time getting on the phone to make the request.

Happy prowled the length of the chapel while Jax and Kozik made their calls. He had his own bone to pick with Juice, no one was going to talk to Madeline that way while he was still breathing especially someone who she had considered her friend since the day that they met.

"Alright, Tran was agreeable to meeting at Bluebird. He'll be there in two hours," Jax said, the wheels in his mind obviously turning. "I need Chibs, Tig and Bobby out there now. Take the Prospects with you and keep out of sight."

"Hap and Op, you're with me. We'll show up on time," Jax lit a cigarette, "see what he wants and then we'll deal with Juice. Hap, do you think Maddy would try to talk to them again?"

"Don't think it'll help any," Opie offered. "Not if Juice pulled the club card to get Happy to take her out of the room which surprised the fuck out of me."

"How is Maddy?" Jax questioned as he realized he should have asked that before he asked if she'd help again. He'd seen her face when she left the room, her feelings had been hurt.

Happy knew what they were trying to ask but he had no intention of talking to them about his wife and how she was feeling. "She's good," he lit a cigarette and continued to stare at the same spot on the wall. The other guys knew him well enough not to push the issue and ask any more questions.

31 31 31

"We're going to make dinner for Daddy," Madeline told Aiden as she pushed the cart through the grocery store. Happy had taken the list she'd given him to the store but he'd forgotten about half the items, that was typical. He'd probably got distracted by the sprinkle section. "And Mommy's got to take another shower," she grumbled.

The sprinkles had been a one time thing, she had sprinkles where no sprinkle should ever be and despite the shower she'd taken she still felt like she had some stuck in some very sensitive places.

Aiden was happily babbling in his own little baby language, his chubby little fists moving to try and grab the toys hanging from the bar on his car seat. Madeline managed to wedge paper towel and toilet paper beneath the cart and grabbed several gallons of milk. She'd never met anyone who drank as much milk as Happy. She was just going to pick up the rice and onion she would need for the steak when she saw a familiar figure in front of her. "Lia!" She called out her friends name, or maybe former friend depending on how the conversation went, and the woman turned and paled when she saw her.

"I can't talk. I've got to get back to Juice. I know that you want answers Maddy, I'm sorry I can't give them to you, not yet."

"That is a crock of shit," Madeline told her, "it's a cop out and I deserve better than I'll tell you later. Where the hell have you been?"

Lia gripped the handle of her cart tighter. "I really can't say anything yet but I will be able to soon, the guys went out for a meeting right?"

"How do you know that?" Madeline's mind was turning a mile a minute.

"Is there a problem here?" A large man, one who was obviously wearing a holstered gun, stepped between the two of them.

"No Franklin, there's no problem. I'm just heading to check out," Lia told him, "just stopped to say hello to a friend." It was as if she just realized that the car seat was in Maddy's cart. "Is that the baby?"

"Stay away from my son," Madeline told her. She didn't know what the fuck was going on but she knew muscle when she saw it. Who exactly was providing Lia with muscle? How did she know that the guys were at a meeting.

"Maddy, come on. I'd never hurt..."

"I don't know what you'd never do, because I would have said that you'd never take off and leave Juice high and dry because I thought that you loved him but you did just that." Madeline shook her head. "I don't know what you're up to or who you even are at this point but I'll tell you one thing, if you're back here to stir up shit I suggest that you leave or my old man will be the least of your problems."

"Miss, you're going to want to walk away now," Franklin told Madeline, "it's not a good idea to threaten Lia." His hand moved in the general direction of his gun, that was his mistake. She half hoped that he'd just pull it out on her right there in the grocery store.

"It's a worse idea to threaten me," she kept a sweet smile on her face, glanced back over at Lia but she realized that she had nothing else to say to her. She turned away though she hated being the first one to do so and headed for the line. It took all of her control not to simply whip out her phone and call Happy right then and there but she wouldn't do that with Lia and her burly body guard standing a few feet behind her.

31 31 31

Anthony Tran arrived to the meeting on a bike, not a Harley like they preferred but some souped up street racing model. He was dressed casually in jeans, boots and a leather jacket. "Mr. Teller, I'm pleased you agreed to meet with me. May I call you Jax?"

"Suit yourself," Jax told him, "what's on your mind Anthony?"

"I actually have two things to discuss with you three, you may of course share with your other people as you see fit but for now I feel this is best dealt with if it is just us. Is there somewhere we can have a little bit of privacy?"

They were essentially out in the open, privacy wasn't going to be easy to come by. "This is about as private as it's going to get," he looked around the lot, "so why don't you start talking and stop wasting my time?" Jax was angry, he'd been hiding it well.

Happy took a step forward, knowing that the situation could go from bad to worse in seconds. If it did, he was ready. He was always ready.

"I know the value of time," the man didn't look impressed at all, "this meeting will be worth yours. I'm sure that you've done your research on me, found what you could find. My interests up to now have never intersected with yours, I prefer to trade in electronics and high end cars as opposed to guns and drugs. However, once your organization was brought to my attention, the more I realized that we could benefit one another."

"How did you get on your radar?"

"That is a long story, I prefer we finish this conversation before we get into it."

"So cut to the chase and then get to the long story. I'm losing my patience with this Anthony just so you know."

"Of course, three times weekly I send a truck either to the Mexican or Canadian border. The contents of these trucks are very dear to me. I need more protection on the runs. I need you and your guys to provide that protection, of course I will make it worth your time."

"Why us?"

"Your reputation precedes you," Anthony smiled, "it will be twenty thousand dollars a run."

Jax studied the man and did the math in his head. "What's the catch?" There was no way anyone was going to offer then over three hundred grand a year for simple protection runs, not without there being a really big string attached.

"There is one more person I need to know is protected, this person is a relative and very dear to me. Unfortunately, they have not had an easy life. There were circumstances which prevented happiness but those circumstances are now over."

"That's a little cryptic for me," Jax shook his head. "So either start talking straight or get the fuck out of here."

"I spoke of the trouble with my brother, how he went against the Sons and Mayans without backing? That was only one of the things he's done recently, it was the straw that broke the camel's back so to speak. A few months ago I discovered that he had done something to a relative of ours, something so horrendous that I nearly took his life right there."

"Why didn't you?" Jax couldn't help but think if he had the guys from Indian Hills wouldn't be dead, neither would the sweet butts or Linda Alvarez.

"Family has always meant the world to me, I should have exiled him then but I gave him another chance. With that chance he brought me to the brink of war with the Sons and the Mayans, I may be sentimental at times but I'm not a fool. He has already gone to exile, never to show his face again."

Happy barely held in a snort of laughter. He'd bet good fucking money that this wasn't the last anyone had seen of Michael Tran, if the man was any sort of man at all he'd already be planning his revenge. At least, that's what he would do.

"Just to be clear, what happens if he does?"

"He would die if he were to return, it would not be quick or merciful," Anthony stood up straighter. "What do you say Jax? Will you consider my offer?"

Jax looked over at Opie and Happy, his brothers were both without expression but he knew that they had as many questions as he did. The offer, even including protecting someone for him, was still very generous. No one was that generous, it wasn't human nature in their world. "We'll get back to you."

"I can ask for nothing more. Thank you for taking it under consideration," he glanced down at his watch. "If you'll excuse me, I have something I must do."

"We'll be in touch," Jax told the man and watched him walk away. Once he was back on his bike the President took a cigarette from his cut pocket, inhaled deeply. "Something isn't right."

"No shit," Opie told him. "He's hiding something."

"Oh yeah," Happy kept his eyes on the man as he rode away, "something big."

"Something that could bite us in the ass," Jax took another drag off of the cigarette. "Let's get back to the yard."

Happy felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, he slid it out and saw Madeline's number. "Hey," he answered immediately. She knew not to call him unless it was something important. "What's wrong?" Both Opie and Jax turned to look at him. As always his face was unreadable. "We'll be right there, stay in the house," he ordered and ended the call. "Madeline just ran into Lia at the grocery store, she had an armed body guard with her."

"We need to go to Juice's place once we talk to Maddy," Opie adjusted his gloves, "think it's time we get some answers from both of them."

"Let's go." Jax tossed his cigarette to the ground.


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize.

A/N: Once again, thank you all for the reviews and favorites and follows. I love the thought and effort that you all put into them. I know this update took a few days so I'll quit my yapping and let you get to reading.

CHAPTER 32

Aiden babbled in his activity seat which Madeline had placed on the back porch. She'd told her story twice, just the facts not the colorful commentary that was going on in her head. They didn't want to hear her rant and she didn't want to upset Happy any more than he obviously was.

He was leaning against the back porch railing, the expression on his face would be unreadable to anyone else but she knew that he was pissed. His hand had gripped the railing so tight when she'd repeated the part about the burly body guard, his not so veiled threat and the way that he'd reached for his piece.

"What do you know about Lia?" Jax questioned, he'd been pretty quiet so far and had only asked her to repeat her story. Next to him Opie's anger wasn't hidden, she knew that anyone threatening a woman was a serious sore spot for him.

"She's an art teacher, she draws really well like she could have been famous if she got a break well, I don't think she had many friends besides me which is why we became friends in the first place. She never talked much about her family, her parents moved to Hawaii where they're originally from when she graduated high school. From what I remember she never mentioned any siblings, I really don't know what else to say Jax. She was just a normal girl but that guy, he was definitely a body guard and I wouldn't want to be with him in a dark alley."

"Don't got to worry about him," Happy rasped out the words, when he got his hand on the big fucker he'd never threaten anyone again, especially not his fucking wife.

"Maybe I should have pushed the issue, made her talk."

"You did the right thing," Opie told her, "kept you and Aiden safe and that's what's important."

"He's right Maddy," Jax smiled at her. "We're going to go to Juice's, have a little talk with him and Lia to see if we can't get some answers as to where she went and why she's walking around with armed muscle."

"She knew that you were all at a meeting," Madeline had given it some thought, even she hadn't known that they'd gone for a meeting and Happy had been naked next to her when he got the call. "Did you tell Juice?" All three men looked at her and she had a moment of wondering if she'd just overstepped her boundaries once more, she was going to have to tattoo a reminder on her hand that she was just an Old Lady. "Forget I asked."

"We didn't tell Juice," Jax told her, "he said that he was going home to rest so we figured that we'd let him."

"So if Juice didn't tell her, who did?" Opie nodded his head. "That's a good question, a really good question because the only people who knew where we were going were the rest of the Sons and Tran."

"Tran?" The question escaped Madeline's lips before she could stop it. "Sorry, I know that I shouldn't ask."

"Call Kozik," Jax told Opie, "see if he got any answers from Wolf yet."

"Take Aiden inside Mad," Happy was leaning against the porch railing, "keep the alarm on and stay inside. I'll send someone to stay with you if you want."

"I don't need anyone here, I'll be fine. I'm guessing that you won't be home for dinner?"

"Probably not," Happy admitted, "don't really like the idea of you being here alone Mad."

"Pop's got the kids tonight," Opie offered, "maybe they could all come over for that dinner. I know that Pop won't turn down a home cooked meal."

"Make the call," Happy told him.

"Wait, three more people? I'll need more steak, especially the way that Kenny eats."

"He does eat a lot," Opie admitted, "starting to get worried he's trying to have Phil's physique. Why don't I run to the store, grab you more steak? It's the least I can do when it's my kids and father who are going to be eating you out of house and home."

"That'd be great. Piney can leave the kids here overnight if you want, I'll get them to school in the morning." For a second Madeline was annoyed when Opie looked over to Happy as if to confirm that it was okay.

"Tell Piney to come prepared," Jax told Opie, the three men exchanged looks that told Madeline they were expecting trouble. "We'll meet you back at the clubhouse Op."

Happy walked over to where Madeline was unstrapping Aiden from the seat. "Better save me some of that steak," he told her, "better not be burned."

"Aren't you lucky that I've got plenty of steak sauce if it is?" She smiled and stretched up to kiss his cheek. Her stomach was turning into a series of knots because she knew deep down that there was something off with this whole Lia thing, it was something in the timing or the bodyguard or just something that she couldn't put her finger on.

"Smart ass," he leaned in and kissed her softly, "keep the alarm on even with Piney here, got it?"

"I got it."

32 32 32

Juice had a headache that made any hangover he'd ever had pale in comparisson, hell he'd felt better when he woke up in a diaper and a sign taped to his chest. "When did you leave to go to the store?"

"About a half hour after you fell asleep," Lia took a sip of her tea, "the food situation here was pretty dire."

"Haven't been here much," he replied. "We should go to the clubhouse, talk to Jax. Explain everything to him."

"I told you..."

"I know what you told me Lia," he tried to keep his voice calm and even, he'd never forget what she'd told him. He'd thought that it was some sort of dream at first, her at his side and then the story she'd told, "it doesn't feel right to keep this from my brothers."

"You're not keeping it from them," she told him, "they'll know soon enough."

"That's not good enough," Juice spoke bluntly and it was obvious that she was surprised by his tone, "this is my family Lia, these are my brothers and they need to hear this from me not someone that they hardly know."

"It'll be better if..."

"It'll be better for YOU if I don't say anything," he snapped the words, "not better for me." He knew the risk that he'd taken already by not telling the club the truth the moment that he'd known it himself but he'd been so shocked that he hadn't been able to think straight. He knew that he'd probably earned himself a good ass kicking in the ring or out of it for the way that he'd spoken to Madeline, truth was he felt as shitty about that as he did about not already having come clean.

"It's not about better for you or better for me," Lia told him, "it's what's best for us."

"It's what Anthony is telling you is best for us," he corrected as he rose to his feet, he still felt a bit off balance, "that doesn't mean it is what's best for us. The truth is the best for us."

"He said..."

"I don't give a shit what he said Lia, Jesus Christ!"

"Don't yell at me," she told him, "I'm not enjoying this either. I just... what if they don't care what happened? What if they blame me for what Michael put into motion?"

"How could they blame you?"

"They don't know me Juice, have no reason to believe me. Maybe I should have just..."

"Just what?"

"Maybe I should have just stayed away," she sighed and sat down on the couch, "maybe we'd have all been better off if I never came back."

32 32 32

"They're in there," Rollie, the newest and greenest Prospect, had been sent ahead of everyone else to watch Juice's apartment, "they were screaming earlier. I wanted to get closer but didn't want to get too close."

"Head back to Teller-Morrow, someone needs to be working," Jax ordered, "Hap and Op, with me. The rest of you stay down here, don't want to completely spook them."

"Looks like we've got some company Jackie Boy," Chibs spoke up, "can't say that our new friend looks happy to see us here."

Happy looked in the direction that Chibs motioned to see Anthony Tran getting out of a sleek BMW. His mind took in the information, turned it over and over, he'd been right that there was something off about the man. Out of instinct he reached for his gun with no doubt in his mind that his brothers were doing the same.

If it came down to a shoot out in the parking lot of Juice's apartment building, they had the advantage in odds though a broad day light shoot out was going to draw attention. The Sheriff would become involved and he had no doubt at least one witness would step forward, it would be a cluster fuck.

"What are you doing here Tran?"

"I could ask the same of you," the man didn't look scared in the least, either he had balls of steel or was stupider than he came across, "I think that it's time we had a talk."

"We've been doing a lot of talking and all I've got are more questions," Jax replied, "so unless this conversation includes the truth consider us no interested."

Anthony Tran nodded and held up his hands in a gesture that was known the world over as surrender. "I understand your frustration, in your shoes I might be to the point of violence first, talk later."

"We aren't very far from that point," Jax's jaw clenched and immediately the mood in the parking lot shifted. Every single man that was there was there for the club, if Jax gave an order none would hesitate to follow it.

"Hey!" The female voice that called out made all of them look over, Lia emerged from the building with Juice behind her. "This has gone far enough, gone on long enough," she looked over at Anthony, "it's time to give them the truth."

"What the fuck is going on here Juice?" Jax's rage was evident as he eyed the intelligence officer. "What the hell do you know?"

"I'll tell you..." Lia started to speak and was immediately cut off.

"Not asking you," Jax told her, his tone cold, "asking him."

"It's a long story," Juice swallowed hard, he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans, "probably better told inside without all of my neighbors staring at us like it's high noon and there's about to be a show down."

"Fine," Jax snapped, "inside now."

32 32 32 32

It was the waiting and the wondering that Madeline hated the most. It was quite likely that the scenarios she pictured in her mind were worse than whatever Happy was actually doing. At the moment she could see him in her mind using his special skills to make Juice and Lia tell him whatever the hell was going on.

"I know that sigh," Piney looked away from the television, "need to stop your worrying. It'll turn out the way it turns out."

She wished that she could take the casual attitude towards the situation that the older man was although he had years more experience in the matter. "That's easier said than done Piney."

"Most things are," he shrugged his shoulders, "but you've got to pick your battles. For all you know they're sitting around drinking tea and talking calmly."

"Tea?" Madeline had to smile. "Calm?" She shook her head, some women might want to live with their head buried in the sand but she wasn't one of them. The best that she could hope for was Happy coming home unharmed.

He always had, there was no reason to think that this time would be any different. "Yeah, tea was probably a stretch." The old man snorted with laughter at the thought.

32 32 32

Juice's apartment was too small for all of the people in it. Happy took a position near the door, just in case anyone tried to take off. He was actually hoping that someone would because this sitting down and talking thing wasn't his skill set.

Juice looked scared which showed that he was smarter than they usually gave him credit for. He was on the couch, Lia on one side of him and Anthony on the other. Like Happy everyone else had elected to stand.

"Lia didn't leave me," he said after what seemed like forever, "she did go to Hawaii to see her parent's after they got into a car accident."

"It was a pretty bad wreck," Lia cleared her throat and seemed unsure whether she should have spoke up, "and in the spirit of full disclosure, I was using the time to figure out exactly what I wanted in my life, if I wanted to be with Juice in the way he wanted me too."

"Before she left, I told her that I wanted to give her my crow."

"So you were in Hawaii for eleven months to figure shit out?" Jax questioned, a skeptical look on his face that was shared by everyone else.

"No, she wasn't. She came back, back here to my apartment to tell me what she'd decided but she never made it inside."

"Took off again?" Opie questioned, the man was usually pretty empathetic but a woman leaving was a sore spot with him so there was no understanding in his voice.

"She was taken," Anthony spoke up, shot everyone a threatening look, "taken by my brother Michael."

"Taken?" Jax frowned.

"Taken," Juice repeated, "snatched from the parking lot of my building!" He popped to his feet, anger clear on his face. "I was here when it happened, I didn't know anything about it or realize that anything was wrong."

"So, you're trying to tell me that you've been kidnapped for the last eleven months," Jax looked around the room, "excuse me if I say bullshit."

"Not eleven months, more like eight or nine months." Lia looked around nervously.

"I told you already that a few months ago I found my brother with my relative in an unimaginable situation," Anthony reminded them, "he had Lia in a house that he was renting, she was not there of her own free will. As Juice said, he grabbed her from the parking lot here and took her there."

Silence fell over the room, Happy took a step closer to the door. He had the distinct feeling that it was going to be ugly. "What's your relationship to them?" The question was directed at Lia and the first time that he'd spoken to her since her return. Truthfully, he wasn't sure what to think, the story was out there but he'd seen stranger things happen in life.

"Our mother's are sisters, we're cousins. We've always been close because our mother's were close but even when we were younger Michael made me a little uncomfortable, the older I got the worse it got. Finally I decided that I didn't want to be around him at all anymore and I... I left LA and came to Charming. No one knew I was here or at least I didn't think that they did."

"Uncomfortable how?" Jax asked, his eyes were narrowed. It wasn't clear if he was buying the story or not but it definitely had his attention.

"He was... always an..." Lia's words faltered and she looked over at Anthony. Her expression was that of someone who was frightened.

"It's okay, I know." Anthony placed his hand over his cousins. "My brother was always what my mother used to call an odd duck, he never really had typical interests as a child. His focus was... varied but when it came to Lia it was always laser sharp. He used to tell my mother that one day they were going to be married. Of course she tried to explain to him that wasn't a possibility as they were closely related."

"He told me that royal families used to knowingly marry cousins to keep the blood line pure," Lia cleared her throat, "I was ten at the time. It scared me but I couldn't tell anyone that. I could never tell anyone that."

"As they got older, the obsession got... worse." Anthony spoke in a matter of fact tone. "Looking back there were many warning signs that Michael wasn't thinking clearly when it came to her but as we got older he apparently learned to hide it better."

"He learned to hide it from the family better," Lia corrected, "when I was in college, I was dating a guy and he... he disappeared. He was never found but I always suspected that Michael had something to do with it. I didn't date much after that."

"He threatened to come after me, to come after the club." Juice spoke up. "And in the end he did, even after Anthony warned him not too."

Happy had heard a lot of stories in his time, he had a good record of knowing when someone was telling the truth or not. Lia looked shaken, scared and maybe even a little embarrassed by the situation.

"And where have you been for the past few months?" Opie questioned. "Somewhere without a phone, computer or any way to let Juice know what had happened?" It was a valid question.

"I thought it best that she not make contact with him until I could come up with a solution." Anthony interjected. "Of course I never realized that Michael would take any steps towards retaliation, perhaps I should have. Once I realized what he'd done, I was going to contact you but you got to me first which was when I realized that the best way to deal with what Michael had done was offer you a deal which would benefit the both of us and ease any ill will that any of you may feel against Lia."

"We can't be brought," Jax informed the man, "I knew that the deal you offered was too good to be true that there had to be a catch."

"There is no catch."

"There is no deal," Jax rose to his feet. "We are not going to be doing business together."

"I fear that you're being hasty Jax, you should..." Anthony told him.

"It's his choice Anthony," Lia spoke up, "and this is exactly why I wanted to come clean with everyone from the start, from the day that you found me. I'm sorry for all of this. It's not what I wanted, not what I intended."

"I'm not buying any of this shit," Jax said bluntly. "Juice, if you want her in your life that's your call but she comes no where near the clubhouse. Understood?"

"Understood," Juice looked over at Lia.

"That goes for you too Tran, you stay out of Charming and out of our way." He directed the words to Anthony. "You should have considered that the truth goes further than money."

32 32 32

Happy considered what he should tell Madeline as he made his way back to the house. Jax had made it damn clear, if Juice chose to be with Lia it was his choice but she wouldn't have anything to do with the club which included Old Ladies so it definitely included Madeline.

He tried to be quiet as he walked in the house but he saw the light in the kitchen was on, he walked in and found her at the table with a book in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. "Hey."

She abandoned the book and tea and flew across the kitchen to wrap her arms around him. "You came back."

"Always do," he pressed his lips to her hair, "anyone give you any trouble tonight?"

"No, everyone was great. The kids did the dishes, Piney gave me a few shots of tequila and Aiden went to sleep with no problem. How did it go?"

"It went," he pressed his lips to her hair, "anything left for me?"

"It was your steak dinner," Madeline slipped out of his arms and moved over to the microwave to start heating up his plate, "and before you ask I didn't burn it."

"Good, I'm hungry," he got a beer out of the fridge.

"All you're going to say is it went?" Madeline asked after a few minutes had passed.

"We went over there, talked to Lia and got the story." He chose his words carefully. "Jax thinks she's lying about it."

"She told you guys but wouldn't say shit to me? Well, I guess you are more intimidating than I am." She kept her tone light but the truth was she was upset. Lia was supposed to be her friend, she should have told her what was going on or Juice should have. Someone should have told her. "What does Jax think that she's lying about?"

"She claims that she came back from Hawaii, got snatched by her cousin in Juice's parking lot at the apartment complex."

"What? Why would she make up something like that?"

"Don't know and don't care, bottom line is she's not getting anywhere near the club." He took the plate out of the microwave as it beeped. "Juice can keep seeing her if he wants but she has no involvement with any of us."

"And any of us includes me?"

"Yes," Happy waited for her to explode, instead a sad expression crossed her face, "come on Mad, don't look at me like that."

"I'm just surprised, I mean..." she sighed, "I don't have that many friends and I really liked her."

"I know that you did Mad, look her story is suspicious. It's even more suspicious that her cousin showed up and offered Jax a deal that would make a shit load of money for us doing basically nothing. And that's not the worst of it," he took a breath, "he was the one who sent those guys here that night."

"What?"

"It was the cousin who grabbed her who joined up with the unhappy Mayans and hit Indian Hills, hit Alvarez. Once the other cousin figured it out he sent people here to keep everyone contained while he agreed to a meeting with us."

"All those men were drugged! Kozik was hurt! He could have been killed. We were terrified, I thought that any second we were going to die."

"I know Mad," he reached out and took her hand, "you might not understand why Jax wants to keep Lia away but I do. I need you to respect what Jax decided and stay away from her."

"How does it work if Juice does want to be with her? I mean, how can she be his Old Lady with nothing to do with the club?"

"She won't be his Old Lady, she'll be his girlfriend," he explained. "You done with questions?"

"Yes," Madeline replied, "go on and eat, I'll go upstairs and put your stuff out so you can take a shower and then we'll get some sleep."

"Got something else in mind," he grinned at her, "but the shower isn't a bad place for it."

"Hap, we've got guests."

"Piney and the kids aren't guests." He grabbed his plate and sat down at the table. Honestly he was a little tired but a few rounds would settle his nerves and calm Madeline down. She took the news well but he knew that she was holding back some of how she was feeling. "But if you're not in the mood..."

"Oh shut up," she grinned up at him, "the day I'm not in the mood for you is probably the day that you need to check my pulse."

"I'll keep that in mind," he grabbed a fork from the utensil drawer, "better be ready, we've got a lot of work to do. I ain't stopping until you're knocked up again. Shit, maybe we'll even get twins."

"Be careful what you wish for Hap, we could end up with triplets and then you'd probably never want to ride this ride again because it certainly wouldn't feel the same."

He let out a laugh, sometimes she still managed to surprise him. "I'll risk it Mad. Besides, if it's not the same I can always just go out and get it at the clubhouse."

"You can get some exciting sexually transmitted diseases there too," she told him with an easy smile because she knew that he was joking with her, "I'll go up and get your shower ready."

"Thanks Mad," he watched her go and realized how lucky he'd gotten. It wasn't that he ever forgot how lucky he was but there were moments like now where it just hit him. As fucked up as it was, the best night of his life had been when that twisted fucker had shot out his tire because if he hadn't, he'd have never met his little red headed devil.


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize. This is done solely for fun, no profit is made from it.

A/N: Thank you a million times to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, followed and read this story. I can't say enough how damn awesome you all are. I hope that you enjoy this chapter because I had serious fun writing it. Special thanks to the freak circle, who always get my mind going to unexpected places!

Chapter Thirty Three

There was only one line on the test, not the two that Madeline had been desperately hoping for. It had been three months since they'd seriously begun to try to have another child and she'd had two tests just like this.

With a disgusted sigh she threw the test and box in the garbage and then pulled the bag out of the can, she hadn't told Happy that she was going to take the test and she didn't want him to know that she'd been disappointed yet again.

"Mama! Mama!" Aiden cried out from the other side of the door, he was nearly a year old. His birthday would be celebrated the following week and it was hard to believe how much had passed since his birth.

She'd felt so alone when he was born despite being surrounded by people because Happy wasn't with her and then he was again, now they spent almost every night together basically all nights unless he was on a run. These days those were happening more and more frequently. She didn't know the details but the pipeline that had brought them the guns which funded most of the endeavors for the Sons had begun to dry up.

For the first time, money was tight. Happy was a very fiscally responsible guy, she wouldn't call him cheap but his Brothers were quick too. The fact that he didn't wantonly spend was the reason that they were able to pay their bills and not dip into the savings that they'd started to build.

Of course, things would be easier if they didn't have the mortgage to worry about. When she'd written the check out this month for the first time she'd been mad at herself, they hadn't needed such a huge house. Four bedrooms? The little office that she'd use if she ever had a job again and the property had made the monthly payment a check that hurt to write. She'd considered looking into another place but knew that if she did Happy would have a fit. He knew that she loved the house but she loved their family more than any house.

Madeline scooped up Aiden out of the walker and carried him into the kitchen with her. It was time to get dinner started, she really did need to go to the store but wanted to wait until the new sales started on Friday. "We're going to have pasta for dinner," she told Aiden as she put him into his high chair and gave him a handful of Cheerios to nibble on.

Aiden babbled to himself, made some noises to his Cheerios and Madeline was able to cook in relative peace. She finished the food in no time, set the table because she felt like having a nice sit down dinner as a family. Tonight it would be just them, Opie had been spending more time with the kids lately so they weren't at her table five nights a week, now it was more like two.

She was just chopping vegetables for a salad when the phone rang. Madeline looked over and saw Lia's name on the caller identification. It wasn't the first time that her former friend had called, would probably not be the last time. So far she'd let all the calls roll to voice mail and had deleted each and every one without listening to them and she hadn't mentioned any of the calls to Happy.

Lia was still a sore spot with him, as were her relatives the Tran family, he didn't go into details which was rare for him but she suspected that the Tran family had something to do with the pipeline drying up. Madeline had asked a few times but his one word or grunt answers had made her stop asking.

She loved her husband and trusted that he would always take care of her and their family even if it wasn't expanding the way that she had hoped. In her private moments she had to wonder if getting pregnant with Aiden had been a fluke, maybe she'd never be able to give him another child.

33 33 33

Happy looked around the table, the mood inside the Chapel was restless because everyone was on edge. They weren't fearing an attack or an unknown enemy, they were worried about making ends meet just like he was.

"I know that shit is rough right now, it's rough for all of us," Jax spoke from the head of the table. "There are as many shifts as any of you want available at TM and if anyone's got specific shit that they can't cover, bring it to me. We'll figure it out. This club is family and we will take care of one another."

Happy knew that no man was going to admit he couldn't pay his bills. For a second he envied the single guys, they weren't as worried as the rest because when you only had yourself to take care of you could live cheap.

"Now, we're going to be meeting the guys from Tacoma at the border for a hand off of the merchandise that they can move," Jax told them, "we can't have any hiccups on this run."

The room grew silent, on the last run there had been a near pile up when one of the prospects, a kid still in his teens they called Chance, had lost control of his bike and swerved. Kozik had gone down hard, his bike taking the brunt of the fall but the blonde man had road rash over one side of his body and the ribs he'd broken were slow in healing putting him out of commission when they could least afford anyone not to be at a hundred percent.

"If there are, we're one step closer to done as a charter," Chibs spoke up, "it's getting hard to keep the wolf from the door boys, we've got expenses that aren't getting paid and in our world we can't keep owing people."

"We need to find another supplier," Jax said what they all knew, "we've had a good run with the Irish and because of history we've taken them scaling things back but we can't anymore. I'm looking to set a meeting with Galen, to try and figure this out."

Happy knew that it was a last ditch effort, the Irish had been cutting down their supply for the past few months. He figured that somehow Tran had something to do with it but he didn't know what, didn't know how it was possible but that was what his gut was telling him.

He glanced over to Juice, the man looked older and harder than he had just a few months ago, it must have been the price for leading the double life that he was. He still held his rank as intelligence officer in the club and when he wasn't with them he was with that girl. It was hard for Happy to even understand why he would still be with her after the lies that she'd told by omission and what her family had done to the club.

"I've got an idea," Juice spoke up, which wasn't his way these days, "not sure that any of you are going to like it, but it's an idea."

"If this idea has the word Tran in it, save it." Jax told him.

"Can you just hear me out?" Juice protested, "I get why you don't want Lia around and why you don't buy her story, it's unbelievable. I've got proof it's true but that's not what I'm talking about. We could still work with Tran, the money that he offered well I think that he'd still give it to us and we need it. Hell, Chibs just said we're barely keeping our heads above water. What choice do we have?"

"There's always a choice Juice," Jax voice had no patience in it, it was hard and cold. "And after all that we've put into this club over the years, all the lives and blood that has been shed we're not going to turn to someone that we don't trust."

Opie had remained silent through the whole meeting, as he usually did. He wasn't a man to waste words, much like his father, he left the long speeches to Jax. When he cleared his throat everyone looked in his direction. "What if this whole thing with the Irish is somehow tied to Tran? They've got their fingers in a lot of pies, the thing they want most is funding for their cause. I can't see them getting too picky where it's coming from. What if all this is Tran trying to back us into a corner so that we accept his deal and his cousin?"

"Can't say that hasn't crossed my mind," Jax looked over at Juice, "you know anything we should know?"

"Me?" Juice pointed at himself. "I wouldn't betray the Sons Jax, you know what they mean to me, what you all do. You're my family."

"Good to hear it. It's time to prove that Juice," Jax leaned forward, "I want you to get me everything on Tran and any connection that he might have to the Irish through any means necessary which includes your girl."

"I..." Juice stuttered but then sat up straight, "I'll get you everything I can but if there's nothing to find, I want my girl protected just like any other Old Lady. I want to have her be part of my whole life, including the club."

"If there's nothing, we'll see." Jax told him, the look on his face suggested he didn't believe that there would be nothing. It was an expression that wasn't lost on Juice.

"I'll do it," Juice said after a moment, "probably going to take me a few days."

"Get started now," Jax replied, "we're done here. I need Hap and Op to stay with me, the rest of you get back to work. Got a shit load of cars and I'm sick of hearing my mother's fucking mouth over it."

33 33 33

Madeline packed the last of the pasta dinner away, she'd already put the place settings away when Happy had called that he was stuck at the garage. They were all working as much as they could, trying to keep the money flowing.

She settled Aiden down, he'd play in his crib for a while that was just what he did every night no matter what time she put him in there. It had just about driven her crazy until Happy came up with the simple solution, put him down and let him play. He'd sleep when he was tired, he'd been the same way as a boy apparently some nights Eve had put him in the car and driven him around for hours until he'd finally settle down.

She kept the baby monitor on, carried it with her to the office that she never used and pulled up the online job search account she'd been neglectfully monitoring for the past few months. It was time to stop being neglectful, she needed to find something so that she could pull he weight and ease the burden on their family. There was no good reason for Happy to do it alone.

33 33 33

Juice shut the front door behind him with a sigh, they'd moved out of his apartment shortly after Lia had been banished to the personal part of his life. He hadn't been attached to the apartment and she'd hated it. He'd never questioned her wanting to move or really made a fuss when she'd said that she wanted a house.

Now he wondered if it was really her money that she'd put into the down payment or if Anthony had given it to her. Maybe he'd always wondered it but never wanted to think about it because despite everything that had happened he still loved the woman. Before she'd left for Hawaii, he'd asked her to be his Old Lady which was still what he wanted but he was starting to wonder if he could really have what he wanted. "Lia?" He called out for her when he didn't find her in the living room or kitchen.

There was no answer, despite her car being outside so he went straight to the bedroom. "Babe?" Still she didn't reply, it wasn't unusual for Anthony to send a car for her if he wanted to spend time with her but it was unusual that she didn't call to let him know or at least leave a note.

Juice felt guilty as he sat down at the small desk in the corner where Lia kept her laptop. He opened it up, entered her password and began to snoop.

33 33 33

The sound of the doorbell interrupted Madeline from the online application she was filling out to become a sales associate for a local used car dealership, yeah she was desperate and applying for anything that she could even qualify for.

Out of habit she grabbed the gun that Happy kept in his night stand, held it at her side as she made her way down the stairs. The porch light was on and she could make out the shape of someone on the porch. The doorbell rang again, this time for a longer duration. If whoever was on the other side woke up Aiden she just might have to shoot them, he was terribly hard to get back down. "Who is it?" She called out as she stood to the side of the door.

"Maddy?" Immediately she recognized the voice as Lia's. "Maddy? Please open the door, I need to talk to you."

Anger flared inside of Madeline, how dare she show up at the house? She knew that she didn't want to talk to her or she'd have answered the numerous calls. She kept the gun in hand, leveled it at her former friend as she opened the door. "I don't want to talk to you."

"Please," Lia held up her hands as if in surrender, "I know that I screwed up hugely, I realize that but I need you to understand why I did it."

"I'm not interested in anything that you have to say now, when I was interested you sat there and let Juice kick me out of the room. That tells me more than anything you could say right now," Madeline kept the gun trained on her, "now get off of my porch before I shoot you."

"You wouldn't."

"Try me," Madeline braced her feet apart, let every single lesson with the gun she'd had run through her brain. At this distance it was doubtful that even she would miss.

"Please," Lia pleaded, "this has all gone too far, I never meant for any of this to happen especially for it to affect the club the way it has. Believe it or not, I wish that I had what you guys do, that family connection that means everything."

"You do have that, your darling cousin who sent men here to hurt my friends! You remember that don't you? The ones who nearly killed Kozik, the ones who made it so I had to watch him almost bleed out on my floor while Tara did emergency first aid with common kitchen items!"

"I didn't know that he was going to do that, I don't control Anthony any more than I controlled Michael, please. Let me tell you what I need to say and if when I'm done you still want to shoot me I'll put the gun in my mouth myself. Please."

"Fine," Madeline lowered the gun but didn't put it down. "You stay right here, you're not welcome inside of my house." She shut the door in the woman's face, went back upstairs for the baby monitor and a sweater. When she stepped out on the porch she didn't do the polite thing and offer a drink or anything else. Instead she turned to the woman. "Start talking and this better be good."

33 33 33

Happy downed the shot of whiskey that Chance poured him and gave the prospect a look that made him scurry away. If these little shits were the future of the club, they just might be in trouble.

Jax had asked him and Opie to remain behind in the chapel to ask a simple question, could Juice still be trusted? There was a time when he would have never doubted the man's loyalty, would have said that he'd sacrifice everything for club but now he had his doubts. He'd spoke them and so had Opie.

It had been silent after that for a long while, they'd had to deal with traitors before and all of them had been thinking of Clay even if none of them had said it. Clay and his merry band of misfits had turned Destroyer and the other Nomads, who was to say that Tran couldn't turn Juice?

If what they feared was true, he'd volunteered to handle it as he'd handled so many other threats for the club. He would kill the man he'd called brother, the man who had once been one of the best friends his Old Lady could claim. If it came down to having to do that, he'd take the girl out as well because if Juice was no longer with them she was the catalyst that had turned him against the family he was supposed to honor.

33 33 33

Juice poured through email after email between Lia and Anthony, each one seemed to prove that there was something he didn't know but Lia sure as shit did. She pleaded with Anthony to stop what he was doing because it wasn't right. In several she compared him to Michael saying that they weren't as different as Anthony wanted to believe if he could do what he was doing.

Everything was so cryptic, he couldn't get a hint as to what she was referring too and when she came home he was going to have some hard questions for her. He printed off copies of all the emails, checked her browser history and found it blank. What had she been viewing that she didn't want anyone to see?

The sinking feeling that he'd been played made a tight knot in his stomach. It wasn't that he just made a bad choice, everyone made bad choices. It was that he knew if Lia was aware of whatever Anthony was doing the club was never going to believe that he didn't know either. In that moment Juice became all too aware of his mortality and the fact that if he went out it wasn't going to be quick or easy. He'd suffer and maybe he should, his decisions might have led the club to the raggedy edge that they were on.

33 33 33

"Are you sure that we can't go inside?" Lia was stalling, she knew it and so did Madeline.

"I already told you, you're not welcome in my home but I'll gladly shoot you right here on the porch, I need it redone anyway," Madeline told her coldly, the fact that she was completely calm actually surprised her but she realized that she wasn't the same woman she'd been only a few years before. Hell, she wasn't even the same woman that Lia had met at Charming High. It seemed like a lifetime ago when her biggest worry was grading papers.

"You've changed," Lia wrapped her arms around herself, "I can't say that it's a good change either."

"Right back at you," Madeline was quickly losing her patience, "start talking or we're done here."

"I don't know how much you know," Lia focused her gaze at her feet, "when I left to visit my parents I was... I was at a crossroads, Juice had just asked me to be his Old Lady and take his ink. I didn't know what I wanted to do, I knew what my heart wanted but my head wouldn't let me choose. Then I saw my parents, they were from pretty different backgrounds but somehow they made it work, I realized that we could make it work too. I couldn't wait to get home. I went straight to the apartment from the airport, I was so excited that I never saw my cousin Michael coming until it was too late. He grabbed me, threw me in his car and told me that if I screamed he'd kill everyone I loved. I knew that he meant it."

Madeline was empathetic enough to feel a pang of sympathy for the woman, unlike Happy and Jax she believed what Lia was saying because of the look on her face. "Go on," she kept her voice hard, not letting a bit of her pity show.

"He held me in a house for eight months until Anthony showed up one day, he did... he did terrible things and I let him because I knew that his threat was real. He killed my college boyfriend, I really loved him. If he didn't die, none of this would have happened because we'd have still been together, I know that. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt, I was willing to sacrifice my freedom for that. You have to believe me."

"Why don't you just get to the point?"

"The point is that the Sons got on Michael's radar because of me, because I was with Juice. He started to hatch his plan, to work with the Mayan's who wanted a leadership change once Anthony took me from the house. He saved me or so I thought."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that Michael and Anthony aren't that different. I thought that Anthony wanted to save me, to let me have the life I wanted to have and I was wrong. His intentions weren't that pure. He's not..." she sighed heavily, "he's not the man that I wanted him to be."

Lia fell silent and Madeline let her, whatever she was about to say was obviously hard for her and obviously important for Madeline to hear because the feeling swirling in her gut was that it had to do with the Sons, with her family who she would do anything for because they would do anything for her.

Neither woman noticed the car across the street or the man that got out until it was too late, the sound of several shots rang out. Madeline dove for cover, ending up in the bushes. Her ears rang from the sound of the shots but somehow she heard the sound of the baby monitor and her son crying, the noise had obviously woke him as well.

She staggered to her feet, gun in hand pointed in the direction of the street but all she saw were the tail lights on the sedan. "Son of a bitch!" she swore, "Lia, are you hit?"

There was no answer and when she turned her head to the porch she realized why, Lia was slumped over with dark blood pouring from her chest. Madeline moved over to her, checked her pulse and realized that she was gone and whatever she had wanted to say had gone to her grave with her.


	34. Chapter 34

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Sons of Anarchy.

A/N: Once again, you guys really were awesome with the reviews, follows and favorites so I didn't want to keep you waiting too long for this chapter. Thanks to R31-M4y3r for taking a look at this for me. And to the freak circle for giving me laughs while I sit here and write.

Chapter THIRTY FOUR

"Let him through," Sheriff Eli Roosevelt called out as Happy barreled towards the crime scene tape cordoning off the front yard, "your wife and son are fine."

"What the fuck happened?" He demanded, his blood was still pumping hard and fast. He'd been on his way home to begin with when he'd gotten the call from Madeline. She'd been brief, too brief, just telling him that something had happened and he needed to get there now.

Jax, Opie and Chibs had followed him with Tig remaining behind to head the gathering of weapons just in case, whatever it was they knew that it wouldn't be good.

"Got a call about shots fired, got here and found Madeline trying to resuscitate one Lia Esber, her efforts weren't successful, the paramedics pronounced her dead," Roosevelt eyed the man, "Madeline is inside with your son, like I said they're both fine."

Happy didn't take the man's word on it, the Sheriff hadn't really expected that he would. Roosevelt waved off the uniformed officers standing in front of the doors, the Sons strode through in their normal cocky manner. It would be a lie to say that he didn't want to take the arrogant pricks down a couple notches but it wouldn't be tonight, not when there were women and children involved.

"Madeline!" Happy nearly shouted her name when he stepped in the door. She came out of the living room, Aiden on her hip.

"I'm okay, we're okay. We're fine," she promised as she stepped forward.

"What happened?"

"Lia rang the doorbell after I got Aiden down to bed," she explained, "I wouldn't let her in the house, I stepped out on the porch to talk to her. She was... she was different and starting to tell me something, something about her cousin Anthony but she wasn't making sense really."

"What did you tell Roosevelt?" Happy questioned, he was furious that she'd gone outside to talk to Lia of all fucking people, he'd told her that the woman was off limits. How was that not clear? It was just like when she'd gone out of Jax's place to help Kozik, she'd risked her life.

"I told him that we were talking, just catching up. I'm not entirely stupid."

"Right now, I'm not so sure of that," his voice was low and calm, eerily calm which was how Madeline knew that she was truly in a world of shit. He'd gotten this exact look in his eyes before, she clearly remembered the night that he'd found out she and Tig had Tiffany Clarkson in the club house and the night that she'd pulled Kozik's half dead body into the house with Tara.

Simply put, Madeline knew that she was screwed. "I..."

"Pack a bag for you and Aiden, go to the club house. Op?" Happy glanced over at his brother, take her there for me."

"Sure thing, come on Maddy. Let me take little man." Opie stepped forward.

"Hap?" Madeline knew that she was risking him exploding on her but she couldn't help herself. Letting him stew in his anger wasn't going to do any of them any good. "Hap?"

"Ain't talking about this here," he snarled the words, "get the stuff and go, I'll be there in a little bit." His expression softened some, he reached out and stroked his hand over the side of her face. "Gonna be alright, just do it."

"Okay," she agreed, "I love you."

"Love you too," it might have been the first time he'd ever spoken the words in front of Jax and Opie and that fact wasn't lost on Madeline.

Once she'd followed Opie out of the kitchen, Happy turned to Jax. "We need to go talk to Juice and find out what the fuck he knows, no holding back this time." The two men exchanged a long look, finally Jax nodded his head.

"Let's do this."

34 34

Madeline was quiet as she rode to Teller-Morrow with Aiden in the back and Opie in the passenger seat. "You got to start being scared of shit Maddy, seriously. You keep doing stuff that can get you killed, I don't want to see anything happen to you. I don't want Aiden to end up without a mom like my kids."

"How was I supposed to know sitting on the porch was dangerous? Tell me that! It's supposed to be safe in Charming Op, why does all this shit keep happening?"

"Shit does happen Maddy, that's why you need to be fucking careful. You're lucky Happy didn't beat your ass."

"He'd never hit me," Madeline shot back, "maybe it wasn't the smartest move I've ever made but what was I supposed to do?"

"You were supposed to listen to your man, that's what. He told you about playing hero, putting yourself at risk."

"I didn't think I was in risk on my front porch! You know what, I'm done talking about this with you. Finished."

"Fine by me, have fun talking to Happy about it."

34 34

"No. No. No." Juice rubbed his eyes, wanted to be able to have not seen what he thought he did. There were pictures of Anthony and Galen buried on Lia's hard drive, lots of pictures taken from a distance. How had she gotten them? What the hell was she going to do with them?

He opened his eyes, they were still there. Fuck, the word kept running through his head. Obviously he was as dense as his brother's had always teased because he'd been completely oblivious to the fact that Lia was hiding anything. With a shaky hand he pulled out his phone and dialed Jax. The line rang several times and went straight to voice. "It's me, Juice. I've got something you've got to see, something that I knew nothing about. I swear to God I am a fucking moron because I had no clue, no clue at all."

Juice ended the call, stuck the phone back into his pocket and went to work. He printed dozens of pictures, emails, copies of text messages from a variety of burner phones. Lia had barely been able to set up her own Iphone, she was not this technologically savvy or had been really good at pretending that she wasn't.

His mind was completely and totally blown by the information he now had in hand, none of it made any fucking sense. Juice heard the downstairs door open and shut, someone was in his house. Quickly he shut down the laptop, shoved it and the cord under the bed while retrieving the gun that he kept there.

Whoever had made the noise with the door wasn't making any more which made his stomach clench into an even tighter knot. This was probably really not going to end up good for him.

34 34 34

The minute that Happy brought his bike to a stop in front of the house that Juice and Lia shared he knew something wasn't right, next to him it was obvious that Jax knew it too. The both got off of their bikes, gun drawn at the sight of Juice's bike tipped over in the drive.

"I've got blood," Happy looked down at the stain on the driveway, over at the trail in the grass that clearly looked like someone had been dragged.

"Let's check inside," Jax went up the stairs first and the front door opened easily as he pushed against it.

They shared a look, went in cautiously. Happy couldn't say what the house normally looked like because none of them had ever been inside but he very highly doubted that Juice and Lia were this fucking messy. Furniture was over turned, pictures knocked off of the wall and there was more blood. It wasn't like someone had bled out, more like someone had been fucked up.

"I'll check upstairs," Happy took them two at a time and found more of the same destruction and another blood pool, this one had a knife next to it. He recognized the ridiculous looking blade as belonging to Juice, it was some replica from some geek movie or comic and he'd been so proud of it that he'd shown them all it several times. "What the fuck did you do moron?"

He continued to scan the room, something on the floor caught his eyes. The cord belonged to a laptop and he pulled it out and took it with him, if someone had tried to hide it under the bed maybe there was something to it.

"Found his prepay down here," Jax told Happy as he came back down the stairs, "last call was to me, I checked my messages. He found something, was babbling a mile a minute."

"Was blood upstairs too, found his knife looks like he got to use it on someone," Happy had left it on the floor. "Best I can figure someone came in here and snatched him, he put up a fight. Found this laptop hidden under the bed, maybe there's something on it."

"Bring it," Jax told him, "and let's get the hell out of here. Where ever Juice is, it's not here."

34 34

Madeline watched as Aiden slept in the portable crib that both Abel and Thomas had used before him, those boys would end up being just like his brothers. Hell, fast forward twenty years and she could see them all as Sons. It was an image that frightened her more than she wanted to admit.

"Hey," she looked up to see Luann in the doorway, "you want some company?" The woman hadn't been around much lately, business at Cara Cara was booming apparently as some of her girls were also working for Diosa, giving the girls more exposure and men the chance to actually fuck a porn star.

"Sure," Madeline turned away from the crib, "I could use the company and a drink actually, this little guy is out for the count and I've got the monitor."

"How you been?"

"Does everyone know that Happy's pissed at me?"

"Honey, it's a small club," Luann smiled, "and if I had a dollar for every time I pissed Otto off well, I'd be richer woman."

Madeline realized that often the older blonde drew comparisons between Happy and Otto, she'd never really understood why. "Lu?"

"Yeah Baby?"

"Why do you think Otto and Hap are so much alike?"

"They're both warriors Baby, both almost a throw back to another time when men did what they had to do no matter what," she smiled, "and no one expected Otto to ever settle down either. Especially not with me, hell I was strung out and taking it up the ass when he first saw me but he saw past that, saw something else."

"Did you ever worry that you could do something bad enough to push him away? I mean, to make him stop loving you?"

"Guys like ours, they don't stop loving. Truth be told I worried more about him snapping my neck than leaving me. You'll get through this," Luann reached out and rubbed a hand over Madeline's back, "and if all else fails, just offer to take it up the ass."

"Did he tell you to say that?"

"No," Luann laughed, "but I know guys Baby."

"Are they back yet?"

"Should be any minute, come on. Let's have that drink."

34 34

They'd gone everywhere in Charming that they could think of that Juice would take off to on the off chance that he hadn't been grabbed at the house, checked in with several of the crow eaters that he favored and none of them had seen him since Lia returned.

Happy's head was throbbing, the dull beginning of a migraine headache that would just make his mood all the more foul unless he ate and slept. He had no intention of doing either, they pulled into the lot of Teller-Morrow and he was pleased to see the security had been increased. No one was getting past them, not this time.

"Quinn's on his way in," Opie walked over to him and Jax, "says that he's got some information from a source down in Mexico, he'll be here within the hour."

"Get everyone together, we need to head into Church. Got some news about Juice." Jax said grimly.

"Not good news I imagine, especially because he's not here. Sheriff is sniffing around, frequent patrols up and down the street."

"Everyone stays on guard, weapons hidden until there's a threat. Don't want Roosevelt getting lucky and seeing anyone carrying so that he's got a reason to come in here." Jax ran a hand over his face. "Church in thirty, I need a shower and some food."

"Got it," Happy told him. He walked into the clubhouse with only one goal in mind, finding Madeline.

"Hey Happy," Luann waved to him from the bar, "Madeline just went back to the room."

He grunted a thanks at her and headed down the hall. He found the door unlocked, Madeline fully dressed sitting on the bed. She was staring down at her hands, didn't even look up at him when he shut the door. "He settle down okay?"

"Yeah, he was out like a light. Gemma found the portable crib for me, he seems to like it," she continued to stare down at the floor, "if we're going to yell, we need to go in another room so that we don't wake him."

"Ain't got shit to yell about, I've got shit to say," he leaned against the wall, "don't much like wasting my breath so it'd be fucking nice if you listened this time."

Madeline braced herself for the lecturing and the underlying anger. She finally brought her eyes up to meet his. "I'm listening."

"We talked about this shit after what happened with Kozik. I don't know how I could possibly make myself any more clear. You need to not put yourself in situations that can get you hurt, you need to listen to me." He clenched his hands into fists.

"I just..."

"You just almost got yourself fucking killed again, you put yourself in danger. You put our son in danger. For what? To talk to some fucking bitch that I told you to stay away from."

"I..."

"Shut up," he growled the words, "if you don't give a shit about your life I can't keep you safe. I can't protect you."

"You know that's not true, I love my life Happy. I love you."

"Then act like it Madeline, I'm not telling you again." Happy rose to his feet. "I've got to get to Church, I'm going to grab a shower. Go to sleep and I'll be back later if I can. If not, you don't leave here unless the place is on fucking fire."

"I can join you in the shower, wash your back."

"No." He shook his head. "Just go to sleep, you need to be rested for when he gets up in the morning."

"Happy..."

"Not fucking now Mad, not now."

"Then when?" She demanded, "when would be a good time for you?" He turned to face her, dark eyes flaring with an anger she'd never seen directed at her before. Madeline took a step back, wished that she could recall her words but they were spoken and there was no way to bring them back.

Happy glanced over to their sleeping son, back at his wife and tried as hard as he could to swallow the red rage that now filled every inch of him. She wanted to know when would be a good time? It'd be a good time once he calmed down because right now no matter how he loved her the urge to grab her by the throat was nearly overwhelming. He'd told her he wasn't good at this shit, she'd said it herself before but she still kept pushing every single button she could by pressing the issue on the one order he'd laid down for her.

"When would be a good time for me?" He was still speaking at a volume that wouldn't wake Aiden but his tone said something else entirely. Madeline began to step back as he stepped forward but she wasn't going to get away that easily. No, she wanted to push when he told her to back off so now she was going to have to deal with his temper. "I don't know Mad, maybe the next time you don't fucking listen to me and I'm standing over your corpse, that might be a good fucking time."

His hand circled her arm, the grip painful. "Hap, I..."

"Don't tell me your sorry, that shit isn't flying anymore. You fucked up, that's the end of the story. Sorry isn't going to fix it or stop you from doing it again. So the next time you decide you want to risk your life, put our son in danger, by not listening to me, it's going to be the end for us."

"What?"

"You fucking heard me, I'm not going to kill myself trying to keep you safe when you can't even be bothered to care," his grip tightened on her arm even more, "so do it again and we're done. I tell you to do something and you don't do it, we're done."

"You can not be serious."

"Try me and see," he told her, there was no trace in his expression that he was bluffing, "now go the fuck to bed." Happy released her arm and didn't wait for her to say anything else, there was nothing that she could say that would change his angry mind.

Madeline watched the bathroom door shut behind him, heard the click of the lock and realized that it was the first time he'd ever shut her out. Tears formed in her eyes but she didn't let them fall, he had a point. She'd done what she promised not to do by talking to Lia and even though she'd had no clue what would happen, she'd once again put herself literally in the line of fire.

Happy came out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist ten minutes later, Madeline was in bed stretched out on her side and she didn't move when she heard him. He didn't say anything when he saw that her eyes still open.

Madeline only began to cry when he shut the door behind him.

34 34 34

Rollie, one of the relatively new Prospects, wasn't as good as Juice with computers but he was better than the rest of them. He obviously worked well under pressure because everyone else in the room simply stared at him until he finally spoke.

"I'm in," he looked up, excitement on his face.

"Want a cookie?" Opie said dryly.

"Actually, I could go for a cookie," the younger man had a pretty good sense of humor, "and the password was her name and Juice's run together in one word, I don't know if that means anything but it's kind of sweet."

"Less commentary," Jax snapped his fingers.

"The history only goes back to today, he spent a lot of time looking at some picture files. I'll bring them up on the screen."

When he did they all leaned in and were treated to the images of Anthony Tran and Galen. "Motherfucker," Tig swore, "knew we couldn't trust that Irish piece of shit."

"Galen's mostly an honorable man," Chibs interjected, "the relationship between the Irish and the Sons has gone on too long for him to throw it away on a whim. Tran must have offered him something, something big."

"Chibs, get in touch with Galen. If he's state side I want a meeting now. Opie, call everyone and tell them to send whoever they can spare."

"On it," Opie replied.

"What about Juice?" Chibs questioned, he'd never doubted the man for a moment because there was no limit to how much he loved him almost as if he were his own son, "sure, the boy is a bit of a moron but he's our moron and if someone grabbed him..."

"Juice is one of ours, he left me a message and I think it was about these pictures," Jax looked down at the computer screen, "we're going to find him."

"First place we should check is Tran's," Piney pointed out as he took a hit off his oxygen tank, "if he realized Juice found these pictures..." he trailed off not needing to say more.

"I want the meeting with Galen first, see if the years we've worked with him buys us any information. Rollie, find the file that Juice has on Tran and get me copies of every single address known for him."


	35. Chapter 35

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.

A/N: As always, thank you for the reviews, favorites, follows and pm's as well as just for reading. I really love to hear what you're thinking. Special thanks go to the entire freak circle for keeping me entertained and giving me interesting things to think about.

Forgive any mistakes, I managed to break my toe/bruise up my foot and after being at work all day and babysitting half the night I'm pretty fried from the pain so my editing might not have been up to the normal standards.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE

Happy never made it back to the room that night, or the following morning. Madeline woke when Aiden did, shuffled to the kitchen to get him his bottle ready and went about her normal routine as much as she could considering the situation.

She hadn't slept well, Happy's words or more accurately his threat had kept playing over and over in her mind. He'd seen her actions as reckless, foolish and dangerous while she'd thought that she was in some way helping. Lia had something to say, something that needed to be said, she'd known it deep down in her gut.

She knew it now but knew better than to say it to anyone, especially Happy. He'd never been quite so angry at her before, it wasn't like they had this perfect light where they didn't fight because they did but mostly they made up before too long. This time she wasn't sure that it would be so easy or that they would make up at all.

"Hey," she turned to see Gemma in the doorway, "I can take him if you want to get yourself some food."

As if Aiden could understand her he let out a cry, flexed his hands and made his body rigid which was his signal that he wanted to go to whoever was there to take him. "Thanks Gemma," she passed him over and watched the woman smile, "you doing okay?"

"Never better Baby," it was clearly a lie but she let Gemma tell it, hell they all needed their lies to get through the day. "The guys just pulled in."

"Thanks," Madeline ran her hand over her hair, "I'm just going to grab a shower really quick if you don't mind keeping Aiden for a few minutes and then I'll do whatever needs to get done around here."

"Everything okay with you?" Gemma ached an eyebrow at Madeline because she'd never know the woman not to run out and greet Happy the moment that he arrived back especially when some club shit was going down.

"Never better," she borrowed Gemma's words, forced a smile and walked away before the woman could ask any questions because she knew that Gemma would be like a dog with a bone. If she even thought that there was something going on with her and Happy she'd pick at it like a little kid with a scab.

35 35

Happy wasn't too surprised to find his son in Gemma's arms but he was surprised to see that Madeline was no where around.

The other woman must have followed his gaze as he looked around. "She went to take a shower, seems a little off this morning. I told her that I'd watch Aiden, don't mind keeping him so that the two of you can have some time."

"I've got him," Happy held his hands out and Aiden came over to him eagerly.

"You know, she's one of the good ones. Stuck shit out, no matter how hard," Gemma tapped her nails against her arm, "ain't saying she's perfect. Shit, none of us are but she loves you."

He didn't reply to anything she said. "Thanks for watching him," he carried Aiden with him to the back of the club house and into the room that they were sharing. The shower was running but he didn't push the door open to tell her that he was there. Instead he sat down on the bed with Aiden.

The little boy looked so much like Madeline, even if he had his father's dark hair and eyes, there was just something in his face and he was like her too, a real sweet little kid. Eve would have been thrilled to have him as a grandson.

"Da! Dada! Da!" Aiden's chubby little hands reached for his father's face.

"That's right, Dad, that's me."

"Mama?" Aiden looked around, obviously associating the two of them with one another.

"Mama's in the shower Little Man," Happy shifted Aiden to sit on the bed, grabbed the frog that he was obsessed with, "want to play with froggy?"

"Frog! Duck! Quack!"

All of the tension that Happy had been carrying around seemed to fade away as he watched his son play. It was hard to believe that he could be so innocent or that at one point he himself had been that innocent. If there was one thing that he was sure of, it was that his son wouldn't follow in his footsteps.

Aiden wouldn't lead the outlaw life, he'd go to school and stay there or get a foot up his ass. He'd lead a life that didn't involve guns, handcuffs or nights spent searching for a brother that couldn't be found.

Jax was meeting with Galen in just a few hours but that hadn't stopped them from checking Tran's properties, quietly of course although he'd suggested that they grab someone and ask a few questions in the way that he was best at. For now the president had tabled that idea, until they found out what the Irish knew and were willing to tell they needed to keep a low profile.

The bathroom door opened and Madeline stepped out, she wore a towel around her body and one around her hair. "Morning," she said after a pause that felt awkward to the both of them.

"Mama!" Aiden shrieked with delight, he bounced on the bed and motioned with his hands for her to pick him up.

"Let her get dressed," Happy told him, "c'mere." Aiden squealed as he was scooped up and tossed in the air.

Madeline winced, she always got a little nervous when he tossed their son around like a football even if she knew in her heart that he would never drop him. She moved over to the bag that she'd packed, pulled out a pair of jeans and a shirt and got dressed with her back to the bed.

Happy watched his ink move on her skin, knew that she was still upset from the night before. Even though it went against his normal instincts, he wanted to comfort her but he held back. She needed to understand the risks that she'd been taking were unacceptable to him because he needed her to be safe.

There had never been a more uncomfortable silence between them, not even when they first met. "I was going to take Aiden out to play with Thomas and Abel on the swing set," she paused, "unless you think it's not safe."

"Just stay on the yard," he told her, "we're heading out in a couple hours, got a meeting with the Irish." Happy watched as she just nodded before beginning to braid her hair. "Not going to ask me what it's about?" Her lack of curiosity surprised him, she'd always ask a question even if he wasn't always able to answer at the time. He ended up telling her everything but when he knew that there was a good chance of shit going down he usually waited until it was over, there was no need to make her any more nervous than she already would be.

"If you wanted to tell me, you would have," she said simply. "Have you eaten anything? I can make you something." Madeline offered, finally turned to face him.

"We didn't have time to eat, spent the night looking for Juice," Happy waited for her to ask what had happened to him and she didn't. Gemma was right, something was off with her and he knew that it was from what he'd told her the night before. "You alright Girl?"

"Never better," Madeline lied, she actually felt like she was going to be sick. "I'll make you something," she looked over to Aiden, "do you want me to take him or will he be okay here with you?"

"He's fine right here," Happy leaned back against the bed, he was really tired and would love to sleep some but he was too wired, there was no way he'd rest.

"I'll be right back with it." She hesitated, just slightly as she reached for the door. Part of her thought that he'd say something else but when the silence stretched between them she just walked out the door.

Luann approached her as she was making Happy a sandwich. "Did you offer him what I told you to?"

"No," Madeline said shortly, "he's hungry so I should finish this and get it to him."

"Alright Sweetie," Luann tugged playfully on Madeline's braid, "whatever he said, he didn't mean it. Don't look at me like that, told you that him and my man are a lot a like. You're scaring him and he doesn't respond well to being scared," she was speaking softly, "I figure it's about you and your talent for getting in the middle of shit."

35 35 35

Juice opened his eyes slowly, saw nothing but darkness. His head pounded much like a hangover or the way that he'd felt after he'd been drugged the last time. His mind began to clear and he remembered Anthony Tran stepping into the doorway of his bedroom.

No words had been spoken, the man had raised a gun. Juice had fired and missed but Anthony's shot had been true. He brought his hand up to his chest, there was no wound there but he knew that he'd been shot. Juice let his fingers explore his skin, finally found the small entrance wound, it was too small for a bullet. He'd been shot with some sort of tranquilizer dart.

He tried to force his head clear but whatever he'd been given was keeping his mind cloudy, his eyes were still heavy and before he could think of anything else, he was out again.

35 35 35

Madeline sat on the sidelines, watching the boys as they played on the swings. Thomas and Abel were careful with their younger friend, helping Aiden to keep up with them. For some reason she was reminded of the first time that she'd been on this playground, gunfire had split the peace.

She'd covered Abel with her own body, shielding him without regard to her own safety because that was who she was. She never wanted to be the kind of person who'd run the other way and leave someone in danger. It might not have always been smart but in her heart it was what was right.

Now following her heart and conscience seemed to be the direct path to loosing all that she held dear. Happy and Aiden were her life, she loved them just like she loved the guys who were always around and the women who they had made theirs.

"Aunt Maddy," Abel came over and tugged on her arm, "it's time to say bye to Daddy." He looked very much like his father as he pointed to where the men were heading to their bikes. "We can go say bye?"

"Da. Dada. Dada!" Aiden chimed in.

"Of course we can go say goodbye, why don't you guys run on ahead? I'll be right behind you," it was hell keeping up with the three of them and they'd only whine when she didn't break out into a full blown run with them.

Her stomach was a knot of nerves, just like every other time he went on a run, and when he didn't look over at her she began to move even slower. Never had she doubted their love for one another, never. She still didn't but now she doubted his ability to put up with her.

Happy scooped Aiden up in his arms. "Da! Da!"

"That's right, Dad," it was a name he never expected to be called but he loved hearing it from his son, "where's Mama?"

Aiden swiveled his head, pointed to Madeline. "Mama."

"You be good for Mama, listen to her?"

"Aiden good!"

Madeline shoved her hands into her pockets as she walked over to where Happy stood. He looked over at her finally, she still couldn't see anything in his face and she'd gotten really good at reading him.

"Stay on the yard," he told her, his voice gruff. She nodded her head in response.

"I will," she stepped forward, hesitated and stopped short of him, "come back?" It was what she always said to him but normally she'd be wrapped around him while she did. It just didn't seem right for her to do that now.

"I always do," he replied.

"Alright, let's go!" Jax called out.

"You be good for your mother," Happy told Aiden again, "Daddy loves you."

"Love Daddy!" Aiden leaned forward and kissed Happy on the cheek, a skill he'd only recently learned and was very proud of.

"Go to Mama," Happy passed him over to Madeline, "remember what I said." She nodded her head, she'd remember because it was impossible to forget. He reached out and stroked his finger down the side of her face, watched as she bit down on her lip. "I got to go."

"I..." her voice faltered, she cleared her throat and tried again, "I love you Happy."

"Love you too," he let his hand drop down, turned to his bike and put everything but the upcoming meet out of his mind.

The engines all roared to life, one by one the men began to pull out. They all looked grim and once again there was a chance that some of them wouldn't make it back. It was the most terrifying idea to Madeline to lose Happy at all but there was extra fear now that they were still not nearly on good terms. He hadn't kissed her. If something went wrong she just might never kiss him again.

"Come on Baby," Luann put her arm around Madeline's shoulder when the bikes were gone from sight, "let's get these little ones inside, make 'em some lunch and then we'll open a bottle of wine."

"There's never wine here Luann," Madeline pointed out.

"There are when I bring them my damn self, beer is great and all but I love my wine."

35 35 35

Galen had brought three very armed, very large men with him to the meeting at a bar sympathetic to the plight of the Irish. He was alone in the booth however and motioned for Jax to join him. "Stay close," the president told Happy and Opie who nodded and took positions a few feet away from the booth. "Want to tell me about Tran?"

"What about him?" Galen replied with a shrug of his shoulders as he lifted his mug.

"He's the reason that you're freezing us out? After all the years that we've worked together?" Jax took a seat, kept his hands on the table but his anger was obvious.

"He's not the reason Lad, you are. You've always been a cocky little shit, it just seems to be getting worse as you get older," Galen's tone remained calm. "You were offered an opportunity to work with Tran, refused it. Had you taken what was offered you wouldn't be getting frozen out of anything. He has the means to deal with much larger inventory than you do, business is business Jax."

"What's it going to take to get him out and us back in? Businessman to businessman."

A smile slid across Galen's face. "Now that is an interesting question."

"So give me an interesting answer," Jax leaned back against the leather seat.

"There's that cockiness, it's not going to serve you well here," anger flashed in Galen's eyes, "Tran brings quite a few buyers to the table for weapons that are... well, more aggressive than those we have been providing you with."

"We can handle whatever he's handling."

"What's that expression?" Galen tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Be sure that your mouth isn't writing a check that your ass can't cash. You have one week to show me that you can take over the orders he's been taking. If you do that, things may go back to the way that they were."

"The Sons can handle it, we will handle it," Jax assured him. "I've got good reason to believe that Tran has one of my men."

"I might have heard something to that effect," the Irish man shrugged his shoulders, "word of warning, Tran is a psychopath. You sure you want to go up against all that?"

"We don't leave men behind Galen, we're not fucking savages."

"I'm not so sure of that," the older man rose to his feet, reached into his jacket pocket, "this is a list of the last order Tran placed, it's what you must match." The list was produced, handed to Jax in a sealed envelope which made Happy uneasy. Why did Galen have it at the ready? There was something not right about this. The feeling was obviously shared by his brothers.

Once Galen and his men left they didn't linger long, the atmosphere of the bar had shifted from friendly to not so friendly. "Let's get the fuck out of here."

"Well, that was too easy," Opie stated as they stepped out of the bar.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Jax looked around the parking lot, "we're still in the fucking dark."

"We could just go for Tran," Happy mused, "I'm pretty sure that I can make him talk." A dark smile crossed his lips because he couldn't think of a better person to put his skill set to use on. "We can find out the real deal with the Irish and what the hell happened to Juice."

"He's going to be well armed, well guarded," Chibs spoke up as he lit a cigarette, the man always got a little jumpy after a meet with the Irish, "could be a suicide mission."

"I'll go after him," Tig offered, it wasn't much of a surprise to any of them that he would volunteer.

"I'll go with him," Happy spoke up, "sit on him a day or so, try to figure out his routine."

"Did Roosevelt use Maddy's identification of Lia as the official identification?" Opie questioned.

Happy shrugged his shoulders, he hadn't thought to ask that. None of them had. "Isn't it usually a family member? To be sure?"

"She's going to be at the morgue," Tig spoke with authority, "they won't release the body to a funeral home until the official ID and Happy's right, it's usually required to be a family member to make the identification and the arrangements with the funeral home."

"Skeeter," a smile crossed Jax's face, "alright, this is what we're going to do."

35 35

Juice opened his eyes again to a blinding white light, for a minute he thought that he was in a hospital but then his mind cleared slightly. He wasn't on a bed, it was a table and his arms and legs were strapped down. He struggled briefly against the bonds but realized that he didn't have the strength to break them.

"Lia is dead," Anthony's voice came from the other side of the room.

"What?" Juice turned his head at the sound of the voice. "What are you talking about? She's not dead, she went to the store."

"You really are a fucking moron, aren't you? She's dead, shot on your SAA's front porch by his Old Lady." Anthony moved closer, leaned in and studied Juice's face as the news sunk in. "It's the truth."

"Maddy? Why would Maddy shoot her?"

"We'll never know, obviously Lia can't tell us and the Sons have all the women under lock and key at the club house."

"They're going to be looking for me," Juice couldn't wrap his head around Madeline managing to shoot anyone, though she had gotten slightly better, especially Lia who had been her only real friend outside of the club once she'd gotten involved with Happy.

"They're not, they've cut their losses where you're concerned."

"That's bullshit," Juice said bluntly, "if you were the good guy in this equation I wouldn't be tied to a fucking table! You wouldn't have shot me."

"That is true, perhaps you aren't a complete fucking moron. Doesn't really matter though, you don't have much time left."

"Neither do you once my Brothers find you," Juice replied as he tried to mentally prepare himself for what was going to happen next. He recognized the look on Anthony's face, it was very similar to one he'd seen Happy and Quinn get several times. He'd never managed to forget those nights or just how much the human body could take before the mind finally broke.

"I told you, they're not looking for you."


	36. Chapter 36

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from SOA.

A/N: I went a little long on this one, I'd say sorry but I'm pretty sure that none of you are going to mind. Once again, thanks for all the favorites, follows, pm's, reviews and just for being awesome and taking this trip with me.

Big thanks go to R3-1 M4y3r for literally saving this chapter from the scrap heap because it just wasn't right! Special thanks to the Freak Circle for always being there when I need a smile or laugh.

CHAPTER THIRTY SIX

Through a haze of pain Juice wondered just how much more he could take of either the knife in Anthony's hands or the words coming out of his mouth. There was no clock in the room, he didn't know how long this had been going on for, it might have been hours or days or maybe just a matter of minutes.

The small cuts Anthony was making were bleeding pretty heavily, if one stopped he would deliberately reopen it, cutting deeper each time. While the knife moved against his skin Anthony kept telling him that Lia was dead because of the Sons, that Madeline had pulled the trigger and that his brothers weren't looking for him.

"Doesn't matter if you're dead or alive because you're as good as dead to them. Do you really think they're going to risk everything just for you?" Anthony placed the knife neatly down on the tray that he'd carried over.

"Fuck you," Juice snarled the words, watched Anthony turn away. When he turned back around with a container in his hands, Juice knew that he was fucked by the smile on Anthony's face. He'd seen that smile before, on Happy's face when he was allowed to do his thing.

"I'm going to give you a chance to think about things Juice, I've got somewhere to be." Anthony moved back over to the table, continued to smile as he took the lid off of the container. "This is common table salt," he explained as he dumped the contents onto Juice's exposed and heavily slashed abdomen, "you know the old expression to rub salt in a wound, right? Well, it is actually rather painful."

Juice screamed through clenched teeth, his vision blurred at the pain. Fuck, where ever his brothers were looking for him they needed to get here faster. If he survived he'd tell Hap about the agony of the salt but he couldn't really see surviving.

The pain raged through him but eventually his mind went somewhere else, to a place where his life wasn't about to end very fucking painfully, to a place where he wasn't a complete and total idiot. If he got out of this, things were going to change.

36 36

There was too much time to think, Madeline couldn't stop thinking about what had happened, kept replaying in her head, over and over again, the sound of the shots that had killed Lia and nearly killed her. She hadn't noticed anything, it wasn't that much of a surprise really she seemed to get herself caught in the worst situations. Madeline lit a cigarette from her perch on top of the picnic table and watched three bikes pull into the lot. Immediately she recognized Quinn, sighed to herself.

They'd gotten along well for a few months when Happy had been inside, until he'd tried to turn her friendship with Opie into something more. After that she'd turned frosty to him when she'd always tried to be nice. She had simply come to accept that Quinn didn't like her, she wasn't going to be able to change that.

He'd most likely be thrilled if he knew of Happy's threat, hell he'd be offering him a spot as a Nomad in no time. Madeline tossed what remained of her cigarette and watched the bikes come to a stop. She didn't recognize the two men with him but then again the Nomads hadn't been around all that much lately.

Quinn strode over to the picnic table. "Madeline." The two with him hung back, both lit cigarettes and turned their attention to the pack of crow eaters who always seemed to be around.

"Hello Quinn," she didn't bother to try to smile, "how are you?"

"Tired, really tired," he replied, "and hungry. There food inside?"

"There is," she replied, "I'll make you a plate if you want." Madeline offered just to get out of this awkward conversation.

"Do that," he told her, "I'm going to head inside, get my guys settled in."

"I think Jax wanted to talk to you, I'll take them in, the girls will follow and then they'll take care of them."

"Leo. Jacob." Quinn motioned for the two men to come over. "This is Madeline, she's Hap's Old Lady."

"It's nice to meet you both, come on I'll take you inside so you can get settled," she told them even as she saw the group of crow eaters easing closer to the door.

"Leave that redhead alone," Quinn told them, "that one is mine, well at least for tonight."

36 36

Happy glanced over at Tig, the former SAA was staring out the window of the pick up truck they'd borrowed from Unser Trucking. They were waiting for Anthony Tran to leave after identifying Lia's body, Skeeter was set to meet him there in twenty minutes to pick up the body and take it to be burned.

"I hate sitting and waiting," Tig tapped his fingers against his thigh, "just want to get this shit going, you know?"

"Yeah," Happy got it, he'd much rather be doing something but there were times that you just had to sit and wait, this was one of them. There was too much time to think when he was just sitting there, he didn't want to think about Madeline. Hell, she hadn't been Madeline when he left the yard and that was on him. He'd just wanted to make her a little scared, to realize how many chances she took so that she could stop and he wouldn't have to fucking worry, maybe he'd done it a little too well.

36 36

The kitchen was finally restored to normal order, dishes done and put away. Madeline had even managed to get the counters sparkling, in other words she was killing time. Aiden was playing with his new best buddies Abel and Thomas, the slight age difference hadn't stopped them from forming some sort of bond.

"You done yet?" Quinn spoke from the doorway and Madeline jumped, she hadn't been expecting him to come looking for her even though he'd made himself clear that they needed to talk when she'd brought him over a heaping plate of food earlier.

"Just about," she turned to face him, "what's up?"

"Not here," he shook his head, "be out front in five minutes."

It was clearly an order, Maddy couldn't deny that and she'd be out there because she really didn't want to get any further on Quinn's bad side, especially if things with Happy didn't get better. Even if he did leave her, and that thought nearly brought her to her knees, she wanted him to be around for Aiden, not somewhere else riding with Quinn and his Nomads.

She went outside in what she'd been wearing all day, a pair of jeans, flats and a stretchy tee shirt, the air was chillier than it had been and the sky looked like it was going to rain. Quinn was sitting on the picnic table, a beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other. "Sit."

Would it have killed him to say please? Madeline pushed the thought down, carefully smiled as she did so. "What do you want to talk to me about Quinn?"

"Hear you got yourself in the line of fire again," he took a swig from the bottle, "can't help yourself, can you?"

Madeline bit back the reply that was on her tongue. If she was too take what Happy had said literally, listening to what he said would mean be nice to Quinn. "Apparently not." It was the best thing she could think of to say.

"Had a girl like you once, was set on inking her and keeping her for the rest of my life," he took a deep drag off of the cigarette, "spent a while together and then things started to break down, started rotting and we both knew it was over. I didn't want to admit it, tried to tell myself it would turn around. It didn't."

"What happened to her?"

"Fuck if I know," he replied, "I came back from a run and she was gone. Left a note that she couldn't do it, couldn't take the life I lead."

"You didn't look for her?"

"Nope," he exhaled a stream of smoke, "and I loved that little bitch, really fucking loved her but she made her choice."

Madeline took in what he said, it hit a little close to home for her and made her wonder just who hadn't heard about the one sided conversation they'd had. It was embarrassing but more than that, more than Happy's cool goodbye, it made her realize just what a fucked situation she was in.

"Tell me that you're not crying," Quinn said a moment later, "Jesus, turn off the water works."

"You don't like me because you think I'm like her," Madeline dried her tears as quickly as she could. "I'm not like her, I don't run. I'll never run on Happy, no matter what happens."

"A blind man could see that," he replied, "used to think that you were like her but you're not." Quinn pitched his cigarette onto the ground. "You're good for him."

The only way that Madeline could have been more surprised would have been if Quinn leaped off of the picnic table and launched into one of the musical numbers from Grease. Quinn thought that she was good for Happy? That was likely a sign of an impending apocalypse in her mind. "Thank you." She stammered out the words after several minutes of tense silence. "I'm lucky to have him and I won't screw it up anymore."

"What's that mean?" Quinn questioned, Madeline swore to herself realizing that she'd just put her foot in her mouth. Of course he was going to ask what she meant, she'd opened herself up to a conversation she didn't want to have.

"It means that you should ask my Old Man," she replied, "can I get you another drink?"

"Get me that redhead from earlier," he smirked, "send her out with a bottle."

"I can do that," truthfully she was just glad that the conversation was getting dropped that easily, "she'll be right out." Madeline hurried away to get the girl, she didn't want to spend the night in the clubhouse so she'd volunteer for kid duty and spend a little time catching up on her reading.

36 36

Somehow Tran had slipped through there carefully set up trap to catch him. Happy and Tig hadn't been the only ones waiting for the man to drive past, there were two other cars in the opposite direction but somehow the slippery little bastard had gotten out of there without them seeing him. Even Skeeter couldn't tell them how he'd done it and he'd been right behind the man. Lia's body was currently in one of his ovens, no family had wanted to come and view the process.

Jax had been pissed, everyone was stressed and they were close to being at each other's throats. "Alright, Quinn and his guys had a chance to rest up. They're going to hit these other places, see if they can get an idea where they're keeping Juice. Everyone else, back to the club house. Sleep, eat, fuck. Do whatever you need to do to clear your head because we're back out here in six hours."

There was no arguing with the President so Happy headed back to the club house, he was glad to see that the lot was manned and could make out the shape of someone on the roof. Despite the armed guards it was peaceful with no loud music and only a few lights burning.

Happy parked his bike and headed inside. The first thing that he noticed was that Madeline wasn't with Luann as had become her habit lately, the two women seemed closer to one another than anyone else.

Luann waved when she saw him, with a smile she moved her head towards the room in answer to his unasked question. Madeline wasn't hanging out, she was back in the rooms. He headed straight back, in the hallway he heard the sound of her voice.

She was reading to the kids, some shit about a wizard on a quest, it didn't matter what she was saying the tone of her voice said it all, she was relaxed and it had been a while since he'd heard her like that.

Madeline continued to read even when Happy stepped into the room, the three boys provided a rapt audience for her so she kept going, still making the goofy voices and expressions they enjoyed as much as the story. Finally the book was done, there was no stalling it any longer.

"It's time for bed guys, no arguing." She knew that they wouldn't argue with Happy there, he was obviously much more intimidating than she was.

Happy watched as the boys got into the toddler beds someone had found, all three were obviously tired and didn't make any fuss as she tucked them in. He moved forward as well, kissing his son and touching Abel and Thomas on the head. "Don't get out of those beds," he told them. "Good Night."

"Night Da." Aiden's eyes were already heavy with sleep, the other two boys didn't seem too far behind."

Did you eat, should I get you something?" Madeline offered after she'd said good night to the boys as well. "Or do you need a shower, I'll get you fresh clothes."

"I could eat," he took hold of her arm as she went to shut the door, "you eat anything?"

"I'm fine. I'll go get you something."

"You eat anything?" he repeated.

"No," she admitted, "I got the kids fed and I wasn't really hungry."

"You'll eat now," he told her, his voice coming across a little bit too gruff, "I can get it."

"No," Madeline shook her head, "you go on to the room. I can see how tired you are and I know that you want a shower. I'll get it. I'm sure that you don't have a lot of time, all of this isn't over."

"No, it's not," Happy confirmed, she looked up at him, "got six hours before we're back out."

"You need to get some sleep," she told him, "go shower and I'll get the food."

For the first time since their conversation, Happy felt himself genuinely smile. "You telling me what to do Girl?" It was a variation of something he'd said to her more times than he could count, her answer never changed. She'd say that she was just suggesting he do whatever and then she'd give him that smile and he'd know that everything was okay with them.

"I wouldn't do that," Madeline didn't smile, she just tucked her hair behind her ears, "I'll be right back with the food." She eased her arm out of his grip and slipped out of the room. It didn't take long to make a plate full of food for him and warm it up.

The shower was running when she made her way into the room, she set the food down and grabbed clothes for him to change into and tossed them onto the chair. She remade the bed carefully and fluffed his pillows up a little.

Happy watched her from the door, he'd just been ready to step under the spray when he'd heard the door shut. Quietly he moved to stand behind her, she jumped when his hand settled on her hip. "Scared you?"

"I thought that you were in the shower," Madeline relaxed against his touch, she wanted to lean back in to him but didn't know if he wanted that.

"I'm about to be," he let his fingers slip under her tee shirt, "might need someone to soap up my back."

"If that's what you want..." Madeline stepped away from his touch, took off her flats.

"It ain't what you want?" His eyes narrowed, anger flared for a second and grew when she took a step back. "Asked you a question."

"I didn't say that," but she really wasn't feeling the least bit romantic right now, she was too busy thinking about everything that she'd do or say to be romantic. One little slip and he'd be out of her life; it was too much to think about, to know that he was willing to walk away from all they had because of something that he didn't approve of. Underneath the feeling of walking through water there was an anger that she didn't dare tap into in case her losing her temper what the thing that would push him into walking out the door.

"Didn't need too," he commented, she was as stiff as a board and there was no trace of arousal on her face, "you good Girl?" Happy had seen Madeline in a lot of moods but none like this. She was in front of him but it wasn't her, not really.

Madeline nodded, reached down to pull her shirt up over her head. "We should go in before the water gets cold," she said simply as she unhooked her bra. Even the act of undressing didn't begin to arouse her at all, in fact she'd never been less excited at the idea of being with him and that made her sad.

"I'll warm you up," he took a step forward, undid her belt and jeans so that they fell to the floor, "the fuck are those?"

"They're panties." Madeline looked down at the underwear she'd pulled on that morning.

"They're huge Mad, I could fit them."

"They're comfortable," she slipped out of them and after a moment of thought tossed them into the trash can, "if you don't like them I won't wear them again." Now she had one more thing to worry about, him not approving of what she wore. Was that going to be enough to send him out the door? It was like the world was spinning out of control and she didn't like the feeling at all.

"I like you in nothing," he grinned down at her.

"I'm in nothing now," Madeline replied.

"I can see that," Happy reached out to trace his fingers over her stomach, "we should probably get you a test soon, shoulda been that time of month already."

"I'm not pregnant," Madeline didn't meet his eyes, "I had a test leftover from last month so I took it."

"And you didn't mention it?" Happy asked, his fingers continued to move over her stomach but his mind was suddenly elsewhere. Since when did she not tell him things? Who was this woman in front of him? Where had his little redheaded devil gone? The one who told him everything and anything. It wasn't just the granny panties or the way she wouldn't meet his eyes. Something had changed in her since the night that Lia had been killed.

"It was the night that... the night that I screwed up with Lia," she admitted, "I guess after everything I really wasn't thinking about the negative pregnancy test."

"Shoulda told me," his hands moved to her hips, pulled her close, "don't worry, it'll happen."

"You still want it to happen?" Madeline looked up at him.

"Yeah," he frowned, his grip tightened, "you saying you don't?"

"I'm saying that if you have doubts about staying with me, we probably shouldn't be trying to get pregnant. If I do something you don't like..." she let the words trail off.

"Sounds like you're the one with doubts," he took his hands off of her, "also sounds like you aren't in the mood for a fucking shower."

"I didn't say that and I am standing here naked," she pointed out, "I'm not trying to upset you. That's the last thing that I want. I'm trying to be who you want Hap, I'm fucking trying." Her voice cracked then, tears had been her friend for the past few days coming at the most awkward times.

He watched as the tears rolled down her cheeks but when he went to touch her she pulled back from him. She'd never pulled back from him before. He watched as she grabbed her clothes, started to pull them back on. "Hey," he reached out and grabbed her arm, "come here."

"Is this like if you ask me to jump, should I say how close instead of how high? Jesus, if you don't want to be with me just leave me!" She was shouting now, her voice echoing off the walls.

"The fuck are you talking about?" Happy demanded, his voice rose to match hers because he couldn't believe what he was hearing, basically she'd just told him that she was waiting for him to walk out the door. "I ain't going anywhere!"

"That's not what the fuck you said the other night!" Madeline knew that she should calm down but she couldn't. No, it wasn't that she couldn't, it was that she wouldn't. She wouldn't cower to him, she'd tried it and it sucked. She knew that after just a few days of it. "You told me that we're done if I don't do what you want to do. How dare you? You knew who I was when we met, you knew who I was when you asked me to be your Old Lady and marry you! You knew and I was good enough but now..." she shook her head. "It's been a while since I felt good enough, even before the other night."

Silence fell over the room after the last word. Happy breathed in an out in a desperate attempt to calm down because he'd never felt the way he did before. "Not good enough?" He managed to speak with effort, how could she not feel good enough? She was his everything, she had to know that.

"Nothing. It doesn't matter," she pulled back but he tightened his grip, for the first time she feared that he was going to actually physically hurt her. Fear coiled in her stomach as he pulled her so she was flush against his body.

"It matters," his voice was a harsh whisper in her ear, "tell me."

"You don't have time for this right now, the food is getting cold and the water in the shower is getting cold." Madeline gave him every chance to get out of the conversation because she wished that she'd never said a word.

"I don't give a fuck about that," he told her. All he wanted to know was why the fuck she'd hidden the way she was feeling from him. "Tell me."

"I shouldn't have said anything, it's nothing. Please."

"God damn it Mad, talk to me." Happy's grip was tight on her hips. "Please." He added.

Her eyes met his as she heard the word, it was very rare that he'd say it. "These past few months, everything's been so tense and it's like... it's like we don't see each other anymore even if we're right next to each other.

"Mad," he sighed and ran his hands over her sides, "why didn't you say anything?"

"What could I say?" She shrugged her shoulders. "I get that part of that was my fault, after the shit I pulled with Kozik but I thought that you'd have been proud of me. I didn't stand by and just let something happen, I did something. Something that I think you would have done in my place, you wouldn't have left any of of your brothers out there. Especially Kozik."

Happy couldn't say that she was wrong, in her place he'd have done the same thing and theyoth knew it. "Mad, you're not me and I don't want you to be. I need to know that you're safe so that I can do what I need to do."

"Do you think that I don't know I'm not you?" Again she was screaming, her hands now clenched with anger as she tried to push him back but he wouldn't budge. "I just want to be me, not some fucking robot that follows every order you say! I don't want to be scared that the next pair of panties I put on that you don't like or the next fucking steak that I burn is what sends you walking out the door. I don't want to have to live like that. I won't live like that!"

"I never said..."

"Yes, you DID!" She shoved at him with enough force for him to release her. Madeline took several stumbling steps backwards, her heart pounding in her throat. "You said it that night and it made everything make fucking sense that you were looking for a way out. You want out? There's the door."

"Calm down," he told her honestly worried that she was going to give herself a stroke or something. Her face was red, she was breathing rapidly and he could see the way that she was shaking.

"Fuck calm, calm was three exits back. I'm a real person with real fucking feelings and I can't just shut them off! I can't be that type of woman Happy, not even for you."

"I don't want a fucking robot! I didn't run out the door when I saw those ugly ass grandma panties did I? No, I'm right here because it's where I want to be."

"Could have fooled me," she replied. She was no longer screaming but the anger was still rolling off of her in waves. "How could you even say that to me? How could you tell me that we'd be through? How do you love me if you could just walk away?"

"I was trying to scare some sense into you!" Happy roared the words and moved forward. He grabbed her by the arms and pulled her back to him. "I couldn't take losing you Mad, not to some fucking bullshit like you going behind my back to talk to Lia and I could have!"

"She was my only fucking friend, did you ever take that into consideration Asshole?" Madeline made no effort to pull away from him because she was all too aware that it might be the last time he held her.

"Mad, you've got a lot of friends."

"I've got a lot of friends here in the club but outside of the club, Lia was it! Mind you she might not have been a good friend in the end but she was all that I had! And you acted like that didn't matter, you didn't even think about it!"

Happy hadn't thought of that honestly, Madeline always seemed so content. "You should have said something."

"You should have known," she shot back, "at least known that something was going on with me but you didn't. You just kept on like nothing was wrong and there was something wrong and I didn't think I could talk to you about it."

"You can talk to me about anything," he told her, the anger gone from his voice because she was right. He'd never even given her friendship with Lia much thought after everything that had happened.

"Well, it doesn't feel like that. Hasn't in a long time. This is your out Hap, you can walk away free and clear. I won't make it hard for you, I won't keep Aiden away from you." There was no way she could fight the tears that burned her eyes any longer so she let them fall, waited for him to tell her that he was taking her offer, that he was leaving, that she was alone.

"Fuck your out," he growled the words, "I ain't going anywhere."

"Don't just say that! Don't say it because you think it's what I want to hear."

"I don't do that, not even for you. Fuck Mad, I love you. I married you, put my ink on you. You think that I'd have done any of that if I didn't want this to be forever?"

"I know that you proposed to me so that Eve could see us married," she blurted out the words, she'd overheard several conversations between the two of them, "and I didn't care because I love you and I wanted to be with you but I keep thinking that it wasn't what you really wanted."

"I wasn't going to ask you so soon," he admitted, "so you're right, I asked when I did because of Ma but I would have asked regardless." Happy ran his hands down her sides to rest on her hips. "I love you Girl, ain't shit that you can do to change that. I told you, I'm not good at this shit."

"You're not that bad," she relented and finally met his eyes, "maybe I'm not that great at it either."

Happy leaned in and pressed his lips to her forehead. It was too easy to lift her up off of the ground. Madeline remained still for a moment, just letting him hold her off the ground but then she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. She realized that Luann had been right, she'd scared him. In return he'd scared her, did that make them even? Or did it make her weak that she just wanted him?

Happy moved to the bed and sat down with her in his lap. "You tried to tell me something that night, I didn't let you. Tell me now." He'd been so angry that night that he'd literally seen red as he walked past the blood on his front porch.

"I was being careful Hap, at least I thought that I was. I wouldn't let her in the house. I never thought that anything would happen on the porch," she rested her forehead against his, "I didn't let her inside because I didn't trust her but there was something, something that made me want to hear her out. She was my only friend outside of the club Hap, my only friend and she was scared."

Happy hadn't heard her speak so fast since when they first met and he still made her nervous enough to babble. "What happened?"

"She offered to blow her brains out if I didn't like what she said and I think she was serious. She talked about what happened to her and about Anthony, she said that he wasn't the man she thought he was and that he was as bad as Michael." Madeline rested her head against his, right after Lia had admitted that the shots had rang out. "And then the guy started shooting."

"Tell me about him."

"I don't remember much."

"Shut your eyes, think about it and tell me."

Madeline sighed but did as he asked. It didn't bring much back. "He was on the short side, shorter than you. I think that he was Asian but I couldn't really tell. He was dressed down, jeans and a sweatshirt."

"That's good Mad, that's real good." He stroked his hands over her back. "I should have listened to you that night." And from everything that she'd just said, he should have listened to her before that night. Now that she'd pointed out the way things had changed with them he could see them. "I love you," he knew that he didn't say the words as often as she needed them.

"I'm scared that's not enough anymore Hap."

"It is," anger flared behind his dark eyes, "it's more than enough for us."

"As long as I keep in line?" Madeline ran her hands over his shoulders softly.

"Smart ass," he smiled slightly, "I just want you to be safe Baby, that's all I'm asking."

"I'll try, it's just hard to turn off what my gut tells me is right to do," she kept her head against his, "I know that this doesn't make everything right but it's a start, right?"

"Yeah Mad, it's a start," He ran his hands over her back. "Say it?"

"I love you."

"Love you too Girl." Happy brought his hands up to cup her face, covered her mouth with his. He kept the kiss slow and broke it before he could get completely distracted. "Come on, let's get in the shower and then eat."

She kept herself wrapped around him as he rose to his feet and there was no way he was going to let her drop, she knew that. "I'm sorry that I scared you."

"I know you didn't mean too," he kicked the bathroom door closed behind them. It was time to take care of his wife, to make her realize that everything he'd said to her was true. He'd said what he had out of anger and to make a point, maybe at that moment he would have walked away but he knew that he'd have come back. He'd never expected to fall in love, never wanted to fall in love but the woman before him had changed all that.


	37. Chapter 37

Disclaimer: I do not own SOA.

A/N: Didn't want to keep you all waiting too long for this so here we go. I edited this myself so any mistakes are mine and mine alone. Thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited or followed during this journey. Special thanks to the Freak Circle, you ladies keep me inspired! Check out my profile for the information on the new blog we all started, going to be a fun fun place.

Chapter Thirty SEVEN

Juice wasn't sure how long Anthony had been gone, there was no way to track the time there was just pain. Every time he thought that he'd gotten used to it, it was amazing what you could get used to, salt would shift further into his numerous wounds and bring with it a fresh level of pain.

He almost wished that he would just die, if he was dead there wouldn't be any pain. He would just be gone. He'd long ago given up the religious beliefs which he'd been instilled with as a child. Now he just believed that when it was over, it was over. This was it, you only got one shot.

He knew that he was far gone when his mind went to what happened or didn't in the afterlife. Juice cursed himself, he needed to find something inside of him that would give him the strength to go on because giving up wasn't an option. He was a Son.

Anthony burst through the door, anger obvious on his face. He didn't say a word. Instead he moved over to the table where he'd found the salt and picked up another container.

The salt had been bad but whatever the hell was in that container was worse, Anthony used it to wash the grains from the wounds. Fire burned beneath Juice's skin, he twisted and turned as best he could against the restraints but didn't scream. He wouldn't scream again no matter what Anthony did.

There was a moment of relief as Anthony turned away. "Ran into your friends, seems like they're having a grand time without you," the man informed him, "I told you that they're not looking for you. They're not going to come."

Juice gritted his teeth, found his voice though it came out more gruff than usual. Hell, he sounded almost like Happy. "If that was true, you wouldn't keep telling me about it." Maybe his mind was still working after all, maybe he was stronger than he'd thought. "They're coming for me and they're going to kill you."

"I can not be killed Juice, not by a bunch of white trash bikers." Anthony smiled. "I've got a special surprise for you, wait right here. I'll be right back."

Juice sighed as Anthony left the room again. Where the hell was he going to go?

37 37

Madeline woke with Happy's arm around her neck, he did that sometimes when they were sleeping and she didn't really mind it except when he'd tighten his grip without realizing it. She shifted as much as she could, pressed her hands against his chest. "Hap, I kind of like breathing."

He always woke easily, tonight was no exception. His grip loosened and he shifted. "Sorry," his voice was low and gruff, "go back to sleep."

She looked over at the clock, there wasn't much time left before someone would be knocking on the door to tell him that it was time to go. "I'm not sleepy anymore."

His eyes opened back up, he recognized that tone. A smile slid across his face. "What are you thinking?"

She pushed the covers off of them, shifted to straddle him. "I'm thinking that you need to stay right there."

"Ordering me around Girl?"

"Right now, absolutely." She blushed as she spoke, it was rare that she'd take the lead in the bedroom but he never seemed to mind too much, in fact he rather liked it from what she could tell. He'd let her have her way with him for a while but then he'd snatch the control back when he'd had enough.

"Better make it worth it then," he surprised her when he smacked her ass hard. Madeline raised an eyebrow at him. "What? You gonna tell me you didn't like that?"

He knew she liked it. She knew that she liked it. Madeline was just surprised because he very rarely showed that side of him, the side that she'd heard the crow eaters whisper about when they thought that she wasn't listening. "You know I did," she placed her hands on either side of his head, lowered her head to kiss him softly.

Happy immediately deepened the kiss, nipped down hard on her bottom lip. She gasped as her body reacted instinctively, her hips moved against him and another gasp escaped her throat as his hard length pressed against her core.

It didn't matter how many times they'd been together, for her it was always like the first time. She got nerves in her stomach, her body would actually tremble but it wasn't out of fear. It was out of a need for him that she'd never be able to explain if asked. There was no one else in the world she could have loved the way that she loved him.

"What are you waiting for?" Happy questioned and broke her out of her thoughts. "Ain't got all that much time." It took effort to keep his hands on the bed and not touch her, especially when she sat up to pull her shirt over her head. After their shower she hadn't bothered to put on anything else, she knew that he liked to reach over and feel her bare skin while they slept.

Madeline lifted her hips to tug down his pants, she lowered herself on to his length and cried out as he entered her. "Hap!"

"Fuck," he leaned his head back against the pillows. When she began to move her hips he had to clench his hands into fists to keep from touching her. She placed her hands next to his head again, her hips worked even harder as she slid up and down his length.

He couldn't resist the slope of her breast and bit down. "Oh," Madeline bit down on her lip as the pain blossomed through her body, it seemed to get twisted up with the pleasure. Both feelings were so intense, there weren't words for it as her hips increased the pace and strength of their motions.

Happy began to move with her, driving his length deep inside of her and holding it there as her body tried to keep moving. "Easy," he told her and with no effort switched their positions so that he was on top.

He spread her legs wide, pushed them back as he positioned himself at her entrance. She was completely open to him, ready for him and he didn't keep her waiting. Happy let out a sound somewhere between a growl and a moan as he pushed inside of her so that she was full of him again.

Madeline could taste blood in her mouth from how hard she'd bit down on her lip to keep any noise from her to a minimum, the walls at the clubhouse were way too thin for her to let herself go completely. Happy leaned in and kissed her, "quit that shit," he mumbled against her lips. "Let me hear you."

"Everyone is..."

"Fuck them, this is you and me. Let. Me. Hear. You." He punctuated each word by moving in and out of her, the hard fast strokes drew a moan from between her lips. Happy picked up the pace as she grew louder, he lowered her legs so she could move against him.

The headboard began to smash against the wall with every stroke as the intensity between the two of them grew hotter. Madeline's fingers were dug into his back, the slight sting of her nails biting into his skin only made him fuck her harder and faster.

He felt her come once, twice and after the third time he knew that he wasn't far behind. In one fluid motion he slid out of her and flipped her over. Madeline pulled herself up onto her knees, leaned forward and looked over her shoulder at him. "Fuck," Happy sank into her warmth, grabbed a handful of hair and put one hand on her hip.

"Oh," she began to move against him and he watched his cock slide in and out of her several times before he bucked his hips against hers, "Hap!"

"You gonna go again Girl?"

"Yes, please," she added with as innocent a smile as she could manage under the circumstances. All of the self control he'd held onto, and it hadn't been much, was gone. He thrust hard against her, felt her body tightening around him just as he knew that there was no holding on any longer. He came with a roar, buried as far inside of her as he could be.

"Oh shit," Madeline collapsed beneath him when he went still, "that was..."

"HAP!" Jax's voice came from the other side of the door followed by the banging of his fist against the wood. "We got a lead on Juice."

"Two minutes," Happy pressed his lips to Madeline's shoulder as he slid out of her, "grab my bag from the closet Mad?"

"The black one?" Madeline sat up as well, swung her legs off of the bed. It was very rare these days that Happy took the black bag out, she knew that the situation called for it but it always made her worry when he had to pull out his special skills.

"Yeah," Happy dressed quickly and efficiently, sliding on his cut over the tee shirt he'd grabbed from the bed, "stay in the club house until I get back."

"I will." Madeline retrieved the bag out of the closet, it was actually pretty heavy because it was so well stocked. "Come back."

"I always do," he moved forward to take the bag from her. "Love you Mad."

"Love you more," she stretched up and kissed him.

37 37 37

Juice watched as the sleek black rat ran around in the cage Anthony had placed right at his eye level. The man had taken extreme pleasure in telling him his plans for the rat, metal bucket and blow torch he'd also placed where it could be seen. Then he'd walked out the door, left him there to stare at the fucking rat that was going to eat his insides. He'd heard of this being done before but had never seen it, it was a fate reserved for those who betrayed the club by talking to law enforcement or giving up secrets to a rival. It wasn't a quick way to go, it was a long hard and bloody death. Juice desperately hoped it wasn't his hard and bloody death.

He didn't know where his brothers were but he hoped like hell that they'd hurry up and get there before Anthony got back and put the rat to use. As the pain began to clear from his mind, he was able to think better. He just had to keep thinking, figure out a way to get the hell out of this situation.

Anthony seemed different than he had before, he was still angry but maybe just maybe he was a little shaken. He hadn't run his mouth off, his words had been brief and to the point. It wasn't much at all but it could have been an opening for him to get himself out of this mess.

37 37

The warehouse was set far back in a deserted lot off of the highway, along side it ran abandoned train tracks. There was little traffic, it was a perfect spot to hide someone. Happy glanced over to Jax. "How sure was Laroy?"

"Ninety nine percent," the President told him, "had Wolf from Tacoma run the address and the property is owned by one of Tran's shell corporations. It might be it, might not. There's only one way to find out. We go in."

Happy nodded and drew his guns from the holsters, he checked the clips and the safety. It was time to end this shit with Tran, get right with the Irish and have shit go back to the way it was supposed to be. He was ready to finish this, they all were.

Happy was the first to enter the building, Jax right behind him. The first floor was empty and they couldn't hear anything. There was a staircase leading upstairs. Opie motioned that he and Chibs would go up while Jax, Happy and Kozik checked the first floor.

It took them only minutes to realize that the place was completely empty despite the Acura they found parked in the back by a loading dock. "Fuck," Jax let out a frustrated sound and lit a cigarette.

"I'll call Leroy," Opie spoke up, "see if he has any other great fucking spots in mind."

"Wait a second," Happy held up his hand and they all fell quiet, "you hear that?"

"What?" Jax looked around.

"Sounded like..." Happy trailed off, listening again. It had been faint but he was damn sure that it was a scream. The warehouse had a basically open floor plan, they'd checked all the rooms so they knew that they were empty, where could it have come from? He knew that he heard it.

They remained quiet for several moments and then Happy heard it again. It was louder this time, clearer.

"I heard it that time," Kozik spoke up, "there a basement in this place?"

"Jesus Christ," Jax tossed his cigarette, "split up, find it."

37 37

Aiden was happily bouncing up and down in a portable crib in the corner of the room while Madeline did her best to clean up. She couldn't stand a mess and needed something to do in order to keep her mind off wondering about what Happy was doing. It was easier to stay occupied at home because there was so much more there to do.

She stripped the bed, made a face at the panties she found beneath the mattress. They certainly weren't hers and were actually stiff. "Disgusting," she said as she grabbed them with a tissue and dropped them into a bag.

A knock sounded on the door and a second later Tara pushed it open. "Hey, the kids are going nuts in here so I'm going to take them out to the yard so they can play. You guys want to join us?"

Happy had been clear about her staying inside the club house and she wanted to show him that she did listen to him. "Actually, we're going to hang out in here until the guys get back."

"You're going to get cabin fever sitting in here, it's just right outside. If you want to keep cleaning I can just take Aiden."

"We're staying inside," Madeline said firmly, "maybe you should too. Just to be safe."

"It's just out in the yard Maddy, it'll be fine."

"I remember the yard getting shot up," she pointed out, "with Abel out there."

"Yeah, that's actually a pretty good point," Tara agreed. "So, everything good between you and Happy? Sounded like you did a lot of making up last night. Thin walls," she added with a smile.

"Everything is great," she replied, "everything good with you and Jax?"

"Never better," Tara replied, "maybe I'll take a look through the DVD's Juice has here and see if there's anything that the kids haven't seen yet instead of going outside. It's sort of hot out there anyway. You want me to take Aiden? The boys have been asking for him."

"That's fine as long as he's inside," Madeline smiled, "we're in trouble with these guys being so close, going to give us all gray hair."

"Trust me," Tara laughed, "I've found a few already."

"Me too, especially lately because I've been shedding hair like crazy." Madeline dropped the garbage back into the trash can and pressed her hand to her lower back. It had been aching all day, no doubt because of her activities the night before.

"Really?" Tara eyed her. "I remember that happening with me," a smile crossed the woman's face, "it was when I was pregnant with Thomas."

"I'm not pregnant Tara, I took a test and it was negative. Besides, right now probably isn't the best time for more kids."

"There is no best time," the woman corrected her, "there's just the moments that we live in. If I've learned anything, it's that. When did you take this test?"

"The other day, why?"

"Because nothing is one hundred percent accurate," Tara's grin grew wider, "and sometimes if you take them too early nothing shows up anyway."

"I'd know if I was pregnant," Madeline assured her.

"Like you knew with Aiden?"

"Shut up," she said because she couldn't deny what the truth in Tara's words. Aiden had been a surprise, the best surprise of her life. Still, she didn't want to think about being pregnant again and have it not be the case. The let down would be too much, the let down when she'd taken the test had been bad enough. "Is there a rug shampooer in this place?"

"We usually rent one a few times a year and have the prospects do them. We do have pregnancy tests though."

"Remember the last time you swore I was pregnant? You were wrong. You're wrong now."

"Then take the test and prove it, unless you're chicken shit."

"Did you seriously just call me chicken shit? Are we twelve?"

"Who's chicken shit?" Luann's voice questioned from the hallway.

"Madeline is," Tara informed her, "unless she takes a pregnancy test."

Luann gasped, followed by a giggle as she pushed the door open and stepped in the room. "What's the problem with taking the test Maddy?"

"I'm not pregnant, you know what? I'll take the test and when it's negative I'm going to say I told you so and you're going to do my dish duty for the rest of this lock down and all of the next one."

"Fine," Tara replied, smug smile firmly in place, "and when I'm right and you are pregnant you're going to be stuck with my dish duty instead."

"Deal." Madeline told her. "Go get the test."

37 37

They spread out over the entire warehouse, searching to find the entrance to the basement. The screams were louder now but they were no closer to finding how to get down to the underground floor. Happy was becoming more and more frustrated and then he spotted a sliver of light.

After that finding the release that opened the door was simple. No sooner than it opened did shots come flying out. Happy returned fire, the others were at his side in an instant and after a moment there were no more shots. Whoever was down there was either dead, badly hurt or out of ammo.

Chibs and Happy descended the stairs first, shot the two men who were still alive. "Jesus Christ," Chibs exclaimed as he looked around the room. It didn't look like a basement, it looked like an office.

There was only one other door, the screams were still echoing through the air at full volume. "That's him, that's Juice."

They moved forward without hesitation. Happy was the first through the door. They were all shocked to see what lay on the other side. Anthony stood in front of Juice, who was strapped to a table, and had a metal bucket held against his stomach.

Jax took the first shot, his bullet went through Anthony's shoulder, the man had been so intent on what he was doing it was like he hadn't heard the gunfire outside the room or the door opening. Maybe he hadn't, he looked surprised as he was turned around after the impact of the slug.

The metal bucket fell to the floor with a clatter, Kozik swore as a rat drenched in blood took off to hide in a corner. Anthony scrambled for his gun but Chibs moved quicker than he could. "I don't think so," he told the man, "don't worry, the fun is just getting started."

Opie and Kozik were already working on unstrapping Juice from the table. "Looks bad," Kozik called out, "need to get him to a hospital."

"No hospital," Juice spoke, his voice raw. He'd started screaming when the rat started on him. Who could have stayed quiet during that. "Club house. Tara."

"He's right," Jax nodded, "you two get him back there. We've got some catching up to do with Anthony here. Isn't that right Hap?"

"Get him on the table, I'll get my bag." Happy smiled, the fun was really about to start.


	38. Chapter 38

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the characters from SOA.

A/N: see end of chapter.

**Chapter Thirty Eight**

Madeline couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen, it was a feeling she was familiar with whenever Happy was on a run and especially when he took that damn bag with him. "Hey," Luann sat down next to her at the bar, "you had enough of that water? Got to go yet?"

"Our time would be better spent setting up supplies in case someone comes back hurt than me pissing on a stick to prove that I'm not fucking pregnant."

"Spicy language," Luann let out a delighted giggle, "finding it hard to control the hormones? Oh don't look at me like that, this is exciting to me. I love babies, never could have any of my own."

"I'm sorry."

"I was too but after all the shit I put my body through it's no surprise that I couldn't manage to have a kid. I was content to just have Otto but there were times when I wished we could have one, a little us running around. Hell, I'd probably be a grandmother by now."

"You would have been a good mother," Madeline told her, "and you're the closest I've got to one now."

"That's real sweet of you to say," Luann wrapped her arm around Madeline, "and as your honorary mama I say that if you don't want to piss on a stick, you aren't pissing on a stick!"

"Thank you," Madeline smiled.

"Let's go and set up those supplies instead, you're right. If one of our guys comes back hurt we need to be ready."

"What's going on here?"

"We're setting up a triage in case anyone comes back injured," Luann told Tara, "and Madeline's not taking any test. If she doesn't think she's pregnant, that's good enough for me."

Tara looked back and forth between the two women and apparently figured that she was outnumbered. "A triage is a good idea but we shouldn't just assume that someone's going to come back hurt. We might get lucky. We deserve to get lucky now and then."

"Ain't that the truth," Luann agreed.

As if their words had tempted fate the clubhouse doors swung open, Kozik and Opie stepped in with Juice in their arms. "Get him in the chapel," Tara went into what Madeline liked to think of as doctor mode.

"I'll get the supplies," Madeline told Tara.

"Clear this place out!" Tara called out as she started for the chapel behind the men.

Madeline wasted no time going to the stock room and pulling out anything that seemed like it could be of help. Luann was at her side, helping her carry everything. "Lu, stay out here." She'd seen enough of Juice to know that the was bad off.

"I should be saying that to you, this ain't my first dance Maddy. Come on, let's go and help Tara."

38 38 38

Happy took his time removing everything from his duffel bag, taking care to explain each and every item to Anthony. Normally he would have just started to use everything, screw the talking but these weren't exactly normal circumstances. No, this man had tortured one of his Brothers and from what he'd seen Juice was very likely not going to make it. Anthony Tran would pay for that, he'd find out what pain really was.

Jax and Chibs stood by silently, they'd seen him work before and knew what was going to happen. The Scot had a gleam in his eye, never really one for torture tonight he was all for it. They all knew that Chibs looked after Juice as if he were his own son.

"Do you worst," Anthony taunted from the table, "cut me to pieces, kill me but it won't make a difference. Your precious little club has lost the connections to the Irish. Tell me President Teller, how long can the Sons thrive without the Irish pipeline in place?"

"Oh, it's in place," Jax smirked down at Anthony, "met with Galen and worked everything out."

"Bullshit," the bound man snarled.

"Your next order will come straight to us," Chibs piped up, "and whatever else you have that we want. No one fucks with the Sons. You're going to learn that the hard way."

Happy just smirked, a movement in the corner of his eye catching his attention as the rat sought another place to hide. He pulled on a pair of heavy gloves and rose to his feet. It seemed a shame to let the rat, metal bucket and blow torch go to waste. It didn't take long to catch the rat, the damn thing froze when he approached it and was returned to the cage he found on the other side of the room.

"Enough talk," Happy moved back over to where Anthony was laid out. He picked up a pair of shears he'd gotten at a hardware store sometime in the past, he kept them sharp enough to cut through flesh specifically toes and fingers.

Anthony's screams echoed off the walls as Happy stood next to his feet, removing toe by toe with little clips of the shears. Blood ran down and pooled on the floor as the man struggled against his restraints.

Even after Happy had removed eight toes, he still wouldn't answer any of the questions that they had for him. Instead he only alternated laughter and screaming. "Son of a bitch," Happy swore quietly. He'd tortured a lot of people, for some reason taking toes off would always get a response.

"Jesus Christ," Jax watched as Happy moved up Anthony's body to his fingers. It was quite obviously not going to be easy to make the man talk.

38 38 38

"I need more gauze!" Tara was frantic, more frantic than Madeline had ever seen her and for good reason.

Juice was bad off, he hadn't regained consciousness since he'd been carried inside. Opie and Kozik had remained in the chapel, applying pressure to wounds and following Tara's hastily barked orders.

Madeline was stitching some of the smaller cuts, there were so many of them that she worried there wouldn't be enough to close them all. She'd never seen so much damage to someone up close and felt just a little sick to her stomach because of it but she'd hold it together.

On the table Juice began to stir, his eyes fluttered open and he let out an inhuman sounding moan. "Juice, I need you to stay still," Tara told him, "just try to stay relaxed, we're doing all that we can."

"Maddy?" He blinked several times.

"I'm right here," she smiled over at him, "don't get mad at me if these scar."

"Is it true? Is she gone?"

"I'm sorry Juice, I'm so sorry. She is."

"He said you shot her, you killed her."

"No, I didn't. He lied. She was shot on my porch but I had nothing to do with it, I swear."

"I believe you," his eyes drifted shut again.

"Okay, we've got to work faster. Opie, go find some superglue. Maddy, you're going to use the glue to close the smaller cuts, we do it all the time in the ER. I need to stop this blood loss or we're going to be in trouble. I can do a lot here but not a transfusion." Tara looked shaken and scared.

"You think that he could die?" It was Kozik who spoke up and voiced the fear that they all had. Tara didn't answer but the look on her face said it all.

38 38 38

Happy had broken a sweat in his eagerness to get information from Anthony and it pissed him off which only made him work harder.

"Get him off of the table," he barked as he looked up at the hook hanging from the ceiling.

Jax did as he asked and Chibs found a heavy chain to bind Anthony's wrists. The change in position seemed to finally get a reaction from him. In fact, the man actually tried to pull away from Jax.

A smile crossed Happy's face as the three of them hooked him so that he dangled from the ceiling. Now, he was going to get answers and get this over with. He didn't want to waste any more of his or the clubs time on the piece of shit now whimpering like a scared child. Shit, he should have gone with dangling the bastard from the start.

"Why did you take Juice?" Jax demanded as Happy picked up a thick metal pipe and tested the weight of it against his hand.

"He knew," Anthony gasped out the words, "he knew what I was doing with the Irish all along. He helped me."

"That's a bloody fucking lie," Chibs declared, his anger obvious in his voice.

Happy swung the pipe, heard the sound of at least one of Anthony's ribs cracking. "Why did you take Juice?" He hit him again, cracked another rib.

"I needed to know what he knew," Anthony's voice was strained from the pain, "what she knew. That bitch..."

"That bitch what?"

"She was my blood, my family and she was going to turn against me! Spying on me. Taking pictures! If I could I would kill her again."

"Turn on you how?" Jax demanded.

"To protect Juice," disgust was obvious on the man's face, "she was going to give me up to get him back in your good graces when that fucker started this all."

"The fuck does that mean?"

"It means he shouldn't have ever been with her, shouldn't have touched her, shouldn't have fucked her. She was better than that, better than him but he made her dirty, cheap, worthless."

"Thought that it was your brother who was obsessed with her," Happy demanded, "you were too, did she have gold between her legs or some shit?"

"She was pure!"

"Pure?" Jax let out a laugh. "You actually believe that she wasn't a virgin before Juice? Jesus Christ, how delusional are you Tran?"

"Not a virgin, I'm no fool." Anthony managed to look insulted by Jax's statement. "She could fuck who ever she wanted but she was supposed to carry on our blood line."

"You wanted to knock your cousin up?" Chibs demanded. "Sick fuck."

"Royal families have done it for years, keep the blood strong and pure. I couldn't accept any other heir."

Happy swung the pipe again. "You're a sick fuck," the blow broke the man's arm and he let out a howl of pain as the weight of his body did more damage to the broken bone. "So you killed her for the information that she got on you and the Irish?"

"No, you simple bastard." Anthony gritted his teeth. "I killed her because she was pregnant by that motherfucker. I told her to get rid of it, she refused and took off. I had to take matters into my own hands. She couldn't be allowed to live."

"You are one twisted mother fucker," Jax told him. They'd all heard a lot of things in their time, disgusting and disturbing things but this was near the top of any list of fucked up shit. "Why did you come after our business with the Irish?"

Anthony let out a long laugh. "Because I could, you are weak. Your club is weak."

"I'll show you weak." Happy swung the pipe again, shattered the bottom part of Anthony's broken arm. "You killed her on my fucking porch with my wife right there."

"Tried to kill her too," Anthony was laughing again, "would have finished it if another car didn't come past. I wouldn't count on her lasting long if your friend lives."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Chibs demanded.

"It's simple really, he believes that she's the one who killed Lia. How could he let her live? Now, you've had your fun, gotten your pound of flesh. Release me and I'm sure we can come to an agreement."

"Not fucking likely," Happy glanced over at Jax, it was time to end this in his opinion. He needed to be sure that his President was on the same page. Jax nodded slowly, they'd wasted enough time on Tran and if anything that he said about Juice believing Madeline had killed Lia was true they needed to get back to the club house.

Happy pulled out the knife he always carried on his belt, there would be no better weapon to end the man in front of him. Jax stepped back and lit a cigarette as Happy moved forward. He stabbed Tran at least a dozen times, deep puncture wounds in places that wouldn't be immediately fatal. No, the man would bleed out slowly and it would be painful.

"I'm going back," Happy wiped the blood from the knife.

"Aye," Chibs nodded his head and pulled himself up on the table. "I'll stay here and watch this piece of shit die and handle the clean up."

38 38 38

The Chapel was quiet, the only sound was Juice's shallow breathing. Madeline had volunteered to remain in the room after taking a quick break to wash up. She sat there and remembered how close she and Juice used to be. She missed that but she'd barely said three words to him at a clip since he'd yelled at her in the hospital.

It had hurt her feelings mostly because she'd never expected that he would treat her that way though if she admitted it to herself they'd grown distant from one another after Happy got locked up.

He stirred on the table. "Juice? Can you hear me?" He moved a little more but said nothing else. "Come on, you need to wake up even if it's just for a minute." Madeline shifted closer. "It'll help us know that you're going to be okay. We all really need to know that you're okay." She moved closer when his eyes fluttered open. "Hey."

"Maddy," he rasped out the word.

"Are you thirsty? You can have a little water, got to take it slow so you don't get sick and pop out your stitches. You've got a lot of stitches."

"Why?"

"You were hurt. Anthony took you. Don't you remember?"

"I..." It was all a blur but he was starting to remember some things, "they found me."

"That's right, they didn't stop looking for you and they found you." Madeline reached for the bottle of water with a straw that Tara had left. "Take a small sip."

He did that and the water felt better in his mouth and throat than anything he could think of. "She's really gone."

"I'm sorry but she is."

"He said... he said that you hurt her, that you killed her."

"No," Madeline shook her head, "she came to me to tell me something but never got a chance too. While we were talking a car pulled up and she got shot. I... there was nothing that I could do."

"Promise?"

"I promise," Madeline told him, "I loved her Juice, she was my friend and I would have never done anything to hurt her."

"Loved her," Juice sighed, his eyes shut again.

Madeline sat back with a sigh. Poor Juice, he'd fallen for Kate only to have her killed by her insane brother and then fallen even deeper for Lia only to have her gunned down. He'd had a shitty run of luck, a run that would break some people but she had the feeling that he would survive. He was tougher than he gave himself credit for, his survival in this situation had shown that.

38 38 38

Happy couldn't get into the club house fast enough. It was most likely that Anthony Tran had been lying about what Juice believed and what he hoped that he would do to Madeline but even if it was less than a one percent chance Happy wasn't willing to risk anything happening to her.

Jax was on his heels and Tara popped up as they stepped into the room. The doctor was obviously pretty drunk, she swayed slightly as she crossed the room to them. "He's going to make it."

"Where's Madeline?"

"She's in the chapel, sitting with him." Tara wrapped her arms around Jax. "I didn't think we'd be able to save him."

Happy left Jax to deal with his Old Lady and went to find his. He opened the door to the chapel, his hand on the knife that he'd used to kill Anthony Tran. Juice was awake on the table but looked like shit. Madeline was asleep in the chair next to him.

"Hap," Juice's voice thickened with emotion, "thank you."

"He told you Madeline killed Lia?"

"Bunch of bullshit, he told me a lot of things. I knew that he was lying, even in the darkest moments I knew." Juice looked over to Madeline. "She couldn't have done that, it's not her. That was how I knew that he was lying about the rest of it."

Happy felt a sense of relief, he believed Juice and was glad that he wouldn't have to kill him for trying to go after Madeline. "Yeah, don't know why but she loves your dumb ass."

Juice grinned, "I'm quite loveable."

"Tara's got you drugged up good, huh?"

"Yeah, I'm tired though. Looks like she is too, get her out of here and to a real bed. I'll be alright."

"You need anything?"

"Nah," Juice shut his eyes again.

Happy thought about waking Madeline for a second but decided against it. Instead he lifted her from the chair and carried her out of the chapel. No one in the clubhouse looked at them twice as he carried her to the apartment in the back.

"What the fuck?" He looked down at the bed and the three boxes of pregnancy tests sitting on top of the covers.

Madeline stirred in his arms, opened her eyes. "Hey."

"Hey." He put her down gently. "Want to tell me about these?" He motioned to the boxes.

"Oh," her face flushed red, "Tara's convinced that I'm pregnant."

"Didn't you take a test?"

"That's what I told her!" Madeline rubbed her eyes. "But she thinks that because I'm losing a lot of hair that it's a sign and that I didn't know with Aiden so I wouldn't know now."

"She might have a point."

"Not you too Hap," she sighed, "the test was negative and I don't want to take another one and see another negative result. I should go get Aiden from Luann."

"Let her keep him a little longer," he suggested as he sat down and picked up a box for something to do with his hands. "Tran's dead." He'd gotten the text from Chibs sometime while they were riding back to the club house. Quickly he gave her a very sanitized version of what had happened, she didn't need to have the picture of what he'd done in her head. "We can go home now."

Madeline leaned her head against his arm. "I think that we should talk about the house, maybe it's too big and we should find somewhere else."

"What? You love the house."

"I just... it's..."

"It's what Mad?"

"Expensive," she sighed, "and with me not working and things being different around here..."

"Things are going to be the same around here, we're back in with the Irish." Happy said without any heat to his voice. He realized that there was a time when he would have exploded for her even worrying about money. "Besides, we're going to need all the room we can get."

"Why?"

"For the other kids, got to have room for them we can't keep them in dresser drawers," he leaned his head against hers, "if that's what you still want."

"I want that," she assured him, "as long as we keep talking and not shutting each other out."

"Might have to remind me, you know that I'm no good at this shit."

"I'll remind you," she promised. "You might have to remind me too because obviously I'm not great at it either."

"Makes us a good pair then," he ran his hand over her hair, "grab your shit. Let's get Aiden and go home."

"We could stop at the store, I'll make you a steak dinner." Madeline offered.

"Gonna make me brownies too?" Happy questioned.

"Figured you might want something else for dessert but if you want brownies, I'll make you brownies."

"I got plans for those brownies, trust me." He slapped her ass as she got to her feet, grinned as she looked back at him. "You know I love you, right Mad?"

"I do," she turned to face him, leaned down and kissed him. "I love you too." And she did, more than she'd ever thought possible.

It didn't take long to pack their things, Happy rounded up Aiden and before she knew it they were on the way back home. For now things were back to normal, there was no immediate threat and they could just live their lives together as a family. She didn't know how long the peace would last but she would take it. No matter what came at them in the future they would face it together, as a family and that gave her more comfort than she could imagine.

A/N: I just want to take a moment to thank all of you who have read, reviewed, favorited or followed this story and Finding Home. Telling the story of Happy and Madeline has been a joy to me, I've laughed and cried while writing this. One of the best parts was being able to share it with all of you.

This is going to be the last full chapter in Standing Your Ground, both Madeline and Happy have shown that is just what they're prepared to do no matter what life throws at them. There will be an epilogue that will follow this, I'm working on it now.

So thank you all once again for your support of this story. Special thanks to R3-1 M4y3r because without her some chapters would have never gotten done and to all the freak circle for their constant support and ability to entertain me day or night.


	39. Chapter 39

Epilogue

"She's not leaving the house wearing that," Happy looked over at Madeline, "no fucking way."

"That's the dress that you agreed to," Madeline leaned her head against his arm, "so you're just going to suck it up. She looks beautiful."

"She looks like you," he wrapped his arm around his wife's shoulder, "just with my hair and eyes."

"Come on Guys, I can hear you," Emma Lowman looked over her shoulder and rolled her perfectly made up eyes, "I'm trying to concentrate on my make up. Mom, I can't get the eyeliner right."

"Don't need eyeliner," Happy told her, "you already got three pounds of crap on your face."

"Dad!" Emma cried out, "I do not!" She looked back to the mirror, began to examine her face.

"You look really pretty." Happy told her. "I'm going to go downstairs, get a beer and find my shot gun."

"Dad!" Emma screamed dramatically, she was one for screaming and putting on a show. No one was quite sure where she got it from. "You'd better not threaten Thomas!"

"She's right, no shot gun," Madeline told him sternly, "he'll be more scared of one of your knives."

"MOM!" Emma shrieked.

"Calm your nerves," Madeline told her daughter, "if there's anyone who won't be run off by your dad showing off his knives it's Thomas Teller, so sit back down and let me finish your makeup."

Happy walked away from his daughter's room. Fuck, how was she already going to her high school prom? It was just yesterday that he'd held her after she was born. She'd been so tiny, he'd sworn that he was going to break her. He took the stairs two at a time, he needed a beer in the worst way.

"Hey Dad," he looked over to see Aiden sitting at the kitchen table. His son had moved out six months ago, saying that at twenty one he couldn't live with his parents forever. Somehow that didn't stop him from coming over for food or to sweet talk his mother into doing his laundry.

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?" Happy grabbed a beer, popped it open and took a sip.

"I quit," his son replied, "I hated it. I know what I want to do and I'm going to do it."

"Told you a thousand times, I ain't sponsoring you," he drained the beer and eyed the cabinet where he kept the whiskey. Madeline would have his ass if he started drinking this early but this conversation made it tempting, very fucking tempting.

He loved his family but his son tested him. He and Madeline had big plans for Aiden, they'd started a college fund and he could have gone anywhere he wanted but he hadn't. Ever since he was seven years old all he'd wanted was to be a Son. So instead of going away for higher education he'd gone to a trade school, there was no surprise in the fact that his son had chosen auto and motorcycle repair. Happy felt the start of a headache, or maybe it was the first sign of a stroke because he wasn't getting any younger.

"You don't have to sponsor me, I talked to Uncle Opie and he said that he would." Aiden rose to his feet, he was shorter than his father only by an inch but broader because he worked at it. "This is what I want Dad, I hope you can respect that."

"Respect what?" Madeline questioned as she came into the kitchen. "Emma's nearly done, where did you put the camera Aiden?"

"It's on the counter, I charged it for you Mom. I... I just told Dad, I quit my job and Uncle Opie's going to sponsor me. I'm going to be a Prospect." Aiden met his mother's eyes which made his father proud.

Madeline looked at her husband and then her son and walked straight over to the cabinet where she kept the whiskey and took out the bottle. She slammed back two shots before replacing the bottle. "If you've made up your mind there's nothing that we can do to stop you Aiden, but I really hope you realize that no one is going to go easy on you because of who your father is."

Happy moved forward to put his hand on her shoulder, she was as against Aiden becoming as Son as he was but for both of them over the years they'd realized that there would be no way to stop him if it was what he really wanted. He was stubborn like his old man that way.

"I know that Mom," Aiden replied, "I'm ready." He moved across the kitchen to give her a hug, dwarfing her the way that his father did.

It was amazing to Happy that he'd managed not only to raise kids but to actually raise well adjusted ones who said I love you and liked to hug and hold hands. There was no doubt in his mind that was all from Madeline but she argued, he'd learned a lot when it came to showing emotion when it came to the kids. The entire time both were growing up it was hell for her if they were sick while he was away because they wanted him just as much as they wanted her.

Madeline held her son tight for a moment, she'd hated the teenage years when he'd been too cool to hug his mother. "We'll talk about it all later, Thomas should be here any minute and Em's going to throw a freaking fit if everything isn't perfect," she released him and moved over to get the camera, made sure that there was a memory card in it. "Are we still heading to the club house tonight Hap?"

"Yeah, going to play some cards and shoot some pool or something like that," Happy grinned, "and with Emma sleeping out at Diana's house we'll have the place to ourselves when we get back."

"I'm going to have a smoke," Aiden announced quickly and dug the pack out of his pocket, "give the two of you some privacy."

"What's the matter son?" Happy chuckled, "I'm not sure if you're going to make it through the Prospect year if you can't handle the thought of me and your mother having sex."

"It's not the thought, it's the mental freaking picture that comes along with it," Aiden replied, "incidentally, the laundry room is a common area so next time you two might want to lock the door."

Madeline felt her face flush as she tried to remember the last time that she and Happy had been together in the laundry room, it wasn't one of their favorite spots but the week before she'd been bent over getting change out of the dryer and he'd come up behind her. Shit, she'd known that she heard a door opening and closing.

"What are you blushing for?" Happy pulled his wife to him. "They know that we have sex and that the stork didn't just drop them off on the doorstep one night."

"It's one thing to know that they know, a whole different think to known that Aiden's seen something."

"Relax, he ain't scarred for life." He let his hands drop to his hips, pulled her even closer to him so that she could feel it didn't bother him at all. "How much time do we have before Em comes down?"

"Not much," Madeline draped her arms around his neck, "could sneak into the laundry room and lock the door." She let out a loud laugh as Happy picked her up and put her over his shoulder. "Hap, your knee can't take my fat ass over your shoulder."

He smacked the ass in question, it was perfect to him even better than when they'd met as Madeline had gotten a fuck ton more curves after the kids. "Stop talking about my ass like that Girl."

"EW! Gross! I'm blind and deaf, blind and deaf on my prom night! Would the two of you stop?! You're old and Thomas is going to be here in like two seconds. Someone needs to answer the door so I can make an entrance." Emma stomped her small high heel clad foot.

Happy set Madeline down, his knee thanked him for it. These days his knee did a lot of talking. He was starting to realize that the day would come soon when it made it impossible for him to ride. Once he could no longer ride than he'd be phased out of the Sons because if you didn't ride you didn't vote. "If you want to make an entrance," he eyed his daughter, "what are you doing down here?"

"I had to tell you two I needed to make an entrance. It's a good thing that I came down when I did because if I hadn't the two of you would have scurried off somewhere and I'd have had no one to answer the door."

"I'll answer the door," Aiden shut the back door behind him and smiled widely. He had his father's smile.

"You stay away from the living room altogether Aiden!" Emma cried out. "I know that you threatened Thomas to stay away from me. Did you really have to threaten to emasculate him?"

"Yeah, I did." Aiden walked over to his sister and leaned over to kiss her cheek, "I meant every word, you lose your hymen and he loses his dick. It seems like a fair trade to me."

"Mom! Do you hear him?"

"I hear him and he's got a valid point, besides if you lose your hymen Aiden will be the least of your problems," she looked over to Happy who had a look on his face that would have sent most sane people running for the door. She was so glad that her family wasn't that sane. "Now, get upstairs for your entrance before your father has a stroke over this topic."

Emma left the kitchen in a huff, she muttered something and Madeline was pretty sure it was that she no longer had her hymen so it was a non-issue. Madeline had suspected as much even if Emma had denied it previously. Thomas Teller might have been Sons royalty with his grandfather as founder and his father as long time President but that wouldn't save him.

"She's fucking seventeen Madeline, I don't need to hear about her hymen." Happy snarled the words, looked over to Aiden. "You better keep an eye on your sister."

"I always do Dad, I'm going to go and clean your machete right in the middle of the living room now."

"Clean the whole collection," Happy told him as he draped his arm around Madeline's shoulder.

"He's going to be a great Son, isn't he?"

"Despite our best efforts," Happy agreed, "I might have to kill Opie before the vote."

"He'd just get Uncle Chibs or Tig to sponsor him then," Madeline leaned her head against his shoulder, "it's out of our hands Hap but at least Emma's planning on college and med school. The time that she's spent with Tara has really paid off for us."

"I still owe Opie a round in the ring," Happy pressed his lips to Madeline's hair, "maybe tonight."

Madeline opened her mouth to protest, they were getting too old to sock out their differences in the ring but she stopped before she spoke. If she'd learned anything over the many years that she'd been with him it was that once his mind was made up, it was made up.

The doorbell rang and Emma's excited squeal could be heard through the whole house. "You probably want to answer that Mad, I might just punch him in the throat."

"Behave now and you'll get rewarded for it greatly later," she promised with a wink. Her husband smacked her ass as she walked past him towards the door.

"Don't forget the camera Mom," Emma poked her head down the stairs, "and don't say anything to embarrass me."

"So I shouldn't tell him that you still sleep with a little purple elephant that his parents gave you when you were born?"

"Oh MY GOD! MOM! You wouldn't! And I do not sleep with that thing anymore."

Madeline smiled to herself, she knew for a fact that Emma still did because she or Happy still checked on her every night in the middle of the night. It was in part a leftover from when she'd been a little girl afraid of the monster in her closet and now because she had sneaked out at least twice that she knew of to be with Thomas.

She opened the door and her smile widened. Thomas Teller was the image of his father, had inherited his killer smile which was now aimed at her. "Hi Thomas, come on in. She's nearly ready."

"I got her a corsage," he held the box out for Madeline to see, "can you show me how to put it on her? Mom was at the hospital and Dad said he doesn't fucking know what to do with it. Sorry I swore Mrs. Lowman."

"Mrs. Lowman?" Madeline shook her head, "when did you stop calling me Aunt Maddy? And I've heard a lot worse than the word fuck, get in here and I'll show you what to do with the flower. Emma! Thomas is here."

"She's at Diana's by midnight," Happy came up behind his wife, "not going to tell you not to drink and shit but she better be mostly sober, no fucking pills."

"Yes Sir," Thomas stood up straight.

"And your hands stay the fuck above her waist or I'll take your fingers and make a necklace out of them."

"DAD!" Emma came down the stairs and put herself between her father and Thomas. "Be nice."

"That was me being nice!"

"Let me see the corsage Thomas. Oh, it's beautiful. Emma, come here and let's put this on so that you can get pictures."

"Oh hey Thomas," Aiden stepped into the hallway with a huge machete in his hand, "hey Dad, is this the one that Quinn got made for you in Mexico?"

"Yup," Happy grinned, "careful with it, it's really fucking sharp. It'll slice through your fingers like butter.

"DAD! AIDEN! MOOOOOM!"

"Alright, enough." Madeline told them all, "Let's go outside and take the pictures so you two can get going."

They all began to move out of the door, she fiddled with the camera for a moment to compose herself. Both of her babies were all grown up, soon Emma would follow Aiden's footsteps and leave the home where she'd been raised. Once again it would end up being just her and Happy, they were going to rattle around this house because it was too big for just two people.

"Mom, you coming?" Aiden called from outside.

"I'll be right there, just fixing the memory card." She used her hands to dry her cheeks. She'd smile today despite the feeling that she was losing her baby because she knew that she really wasn't. She was blessed to have the family that she did; a husband who loved her, two kids who had turned out really well and the club that had once been Happy's only family besides Eve. Now they were her family as well and despite the ups and downs she wouldn't change one single thing about her life at all.

THE END

A/N: It's hard for me to post this and let these characters rest because I really do love them. I just want to thank you all for following me on this trip with them. The countless reviews, favorites, follows and PM's I've got over this story have really meant so much to me.

I'm kicking around the idea of doing a one shot series for moment in their lives I obviously wasn't able to cover so you all will be the first to know if I do.


End file.
